Latest Football News

John Terry will leave Chelsea at the end of the season after the Premier League champions told him they would not be renewing his contract.
Speaking after the 5-1 FA Cup win at MK Dons on Sunday, the Chelsea captain told reporters that his 18-year association with the Blues would come to an end in the summer.
But the 35-year-old insisted he was not ready to retire and would instead pursue a future away from the Premier League.
“I was in last week before the Arsenal game, and it [my contract] is not going to be extended,” Terry said.

Chelsea will move for Atletico Madrid’s £60m-rated France forward Antoine Griezmann in the summer if their Belgium international Eden Hazard moves to either Real Madrid or Paris St-Germain.

Man City boss Manuel Pellegrini feels Kelechi Iheanacho is justifiying not to sign a striker after selling Stevan Jovetic and Edin Dzeko.

Manchester City are emerging as favourites to sign Everton defender John Stones, rated at £50m, although Chelsea are also still interested in the 21-year-old England international.

City hope to unveil Pep Guardiola on a pre-season tour of China as they look to boost their popularity

Ahmed Musa is pleased to be attracting interest from Manchester United and Leicester City but will not force a move out of CSKA Moscow.

Fenerbahce chairman Aziz Yildirim says their Nigeria striker Emmanuel Emenike, 28, is on the verge of joining West Ham United on loan for the rest of the season.

Manchester United will make a move for Tottenham pair Harry Kane and Deli Alli, who have both excelled this season.

United will receive a £23m bid from Real Madrid for Spain goalkeeper David de Gea, 25, in the summer.

Michael Carrick, 34, could also be on the way out of Old Trafford. He is out of contract in five months and a number of Premier League and overseas clubs are keen to tempt him away.

Tottenham are keen to make one final bid for West Brom striker Saido Berahino, 22, before the transfer window closes on Monday.

But Newcastle are preparing to make a club record £34m bid for Berahino.

Leicester City are reported to have had a £11.5m offer accepted for Chelsea’s France striker Loic Remy.

Leicester City boss Claudio Ranieri has joined Swansea City in the race for Crystal Palace striker Dwight Gayle

Tottenham have rejected the chance to sign Fernando Torres in the final days of the January window.

Newcastle winger Florian Thauvin has returned to Marseille on loan until the end of the season.

Stoke have called off a club record move for Porto’s French midfielder Giannelli Imbula, 23, and turned down a £10m offer from abroad for their 28-year-old Senegal striker Mame Diouf.

West Ham United striker Nikica Jelavic will be the latest Premier League name to head for a final pay day in China once Nigerian international Emmanuel Emenike completes his loan move from Fenerbahce

Liverpool are in talks with super-agent Jorge Mendes over a new deal for Joao Teixeira

Milos Veljkovic is poised to end his Tottenham frustration by joining Bundesliga outfit Werder Bremen.

Jorge Sampaoli wants the Chelsea job and would try to sign Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal if appointed

Michael Appleton has been asked to shape the future of Manchester United as their new academy chief.

With Nolito no longer an option, Barcelona are considering a move for Manchester United attacker Juan Mata. Reports claim Mata would be interested in a move to Camp Nou, but may have to wait until the summer.

Real Madrid are keen to tie down Castilla striker Borja Mayoral to a new four-year contract due to interest from Premier League side Chelsea. The 18-year-old’s current deal runs out in 18 months.

Atletico Madrid left-back Guilherme Siqueira has abandoned a proposed move to Newcastle, instead opting to join Valencia. The move, however, frees up Los Che left-back Lucas Orban for a move to St. James’ Park.

Bayern Munich utility man Javi Martinez has injured his knee and will be out of action for up to three weeks.

Thierry Henry has urged Manchester United to call time on Louis van Gaal’s era and turn to “amazing coach” Jose Mourinho to revive the club’s fortunes.

United have watched Tottenham full-back Danny Rose four times, but their rivals have told them the defender is not for sale.

Manchester United have been told they need to cut costs in all departments by their owners, the Glazer family. It is expected budgets will be slashed by around 15 per cent.

Arsenal midfielder Alex Iwobi, 19, has revealed he has literally been told to pull his socks up by assistant manager Steve Bould – and wear them higher to match his team-mates.

Atletico Madrid left-back Guilherme Siqueira has abandoned a proposed move to Newcastle, instead opting to join Valencia. The move, however, frees up Los Che left-back Lucas Orban for a move to St. James’ Park.

Roma striker Seydou Doumbia will go through a medical on Sunday ahead of a loan move to Newcastle United.

Crystal Palace star Wilfried Zaha has been described as Britain’s vainest footballer after it was revealed the 23-year-old gets his beard and hair cut every day.

MLS side DC United are considering a move for former Manchester City, Celtic and West Brom striker Georgios Samaras, 30. The Greece international is a free agent.

West Brom defender Sebastien Pocognoli may leave The Hawthorns after the 28-year-old Belgium international emerged as a loan target for Championship side Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The Baggies are hoping to sign 24-year-old QPR winger Mat Phillips, who is a long-time target, in an £8m deal.

Borussia Dortmund star Mats Hummels and manager Thomas Tuchel both expressed support for an instant replay system after the referee admitted the club’s opening goal in Saturday’s 2-0 win should have been whistled for offside.

A cheeky Colchester fan tried to get a souvenir from Saturday’s loss at the hands of Tottenham after invading the pitch to ask visiting goalkeeper Michel Vorm for an autograph.

FA Cup : Fifth Round Draws

Chelsea will host Manchester City for a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals, while Shrewsbury host Manchester United and holders Arsenal face Hull.
Chelsea and City will meet at Stamford Bridge in arguably the tie of the round next month, with both sides easing into the last 16 on the back of big away wins over the weekend; City seeing off Aston Villa 4-0 and MK Dons suffering a 5-1 home humbling to Chelsea.
Shrewsbury’s reward for seeing off Championship side Sheffield Wednesday is a home date with Louis van Gaal’s Manchester United, while holders Arsenal will face Hull – why they beat in the 2014 final – once again.
Leeds, in the last 16 for only the second time in 13 years, must travel to Watford, while they’ll be all Premier League ties at White Hart Lane, where Spurs will host Crystal Palace, and at Dean Court, where Bournemouth play Everton.

Chelsea v Manchester City
Reading v West Brom or Peterborough
Watford v Leeds United
Shrewsbury Town v Manchester United
Blackburn v Liverpool or West Ham
Tottenham v Crystal Palace
Arsenal v Hull
Bournemouth v Everton

Ties to be played on weekend 19-22 February.

FA Cup results

Oscar fired a first-half hat-trick and Eden Hazard finally opened his account for the season as Chelsea eased to a 5-1 victory away to MK Dons and book a place in the FA Cup fifth round.
Chelsea took the lead after 15 minutes when a horrible mistake from Kyle McFadzean allowed Diego Costa to pick the ball up on the left-side of the area and he squared for Oscar to slide the ball in an unprotected net from 12 yards.
But Darren Potter levelled matters just five minutes later when his 20-yard strike took a wicked deflection off Nemanja Matic and looped into the top corner of Thibaut Courtois’ net.
Eden Hazard then wasted a glorious chance to end his season-long goal drought when, one on one with David Martin, he saw his effort saved onto the post and back into the arms of the grateful goalkeeper.
The visitors restored their lead after 32 minutes when Oscar drove in an angled drive following a lovely throughball from Reuben Loftus-Cheek.
And the player was celebrating his hat-trick a couple of minutes before the break when he scored a goal of absolute top quality, picking the ball up on the left flank, before cutting inside three challenges and bending an unsaveable effort into the corner from edge of the area.
Hazard did break his 30-game wait for a goal by tucking home from the penalty spot in the 55th minute, while Bertrand Traore made it 5-1 with a simple finish in the 63rd minute.

Arouna Kone, Aaron Lennon and Ross Barkley scored as Everton eased into the fifth round of the FA Cup with a 3-0 win at Carlisle United.
Everton made six changes from the side that lost at Manchester City in the Capital One Cup in midweek, with Seamus Coleman, Bryan Oviedo, James McCarthy, Aaron Lennon, Steven Pienaar and Arouna Kone in for John Stones, Leighton Baines, Gareth Barry, Leon Osman, Gerard Deulofeu and Romelu Lukaku.

Carlisle United 0 – 3 Everton
Milton Keynes Dons 1 – 5 Chelsea

Ligue 1 results

Cheikh N’Doye’s double helped lift Angers up to third place in Ligue 1 following a convincing 3-0 home win against second-placed Monaco.
Senegal international N’Doye struck twice from close range in the 19th and 43rd minutes and Mohamed Yattara sealed victory with a third 10 minutes into the second half.
Angers, promoted at the end of last season, bounced back from last week’s 5-1 thrashing at runaway leaders Paris Saint-Germain to halt a three-game losing run in all competitions and climb to within two points of Monaco, who slipped to their first defeat in 10 league matches.
PSG will bid to extend their 21-point lead at the top on Sunday when they travel south to face St Etienne.

Lyon’s hopes of European football were dealt a blow as Bastia’s Brazilian striker Brandao struck in the second half for a 1-0 win.
Bastia were reduced to 10 men in the 88th minute when defender Gilles Cioni was hown a straight red card for his crude challenge on substitute Clement Grenier.
Lyon trail fourth-placed Rennes by four points, while Bastia — with Francois Ciccolini returning for his second spell as coach — put more daylight between themselves and the relegation zone.

Nantes extended their unbeaten league run to nine matches with a 1-0 win at Troyes, who have yet to win at home in the league this season.
Nantes’ Belgian defender Guillaume Gillet scored the only goal four minutes before the interval.

Lorient defender Zargo Toure struck twice in a 2-0 home win against Reims to secure his side their first win in five league matches .
The Senegalese scored in the 15th and 51st minutes as Reims’ winless run was extended to eight games in all competitions.

Montpellier boosted their relegation fight by snapping a run of four straight defeats in all competitions with their biggest win of the season, 4-0 at GFC Ajaccio.
Montpellier went in two up at the break through Mali striker Mustapha Yatabare and Jonas Martins’ penalty before midfielder Bryan Dabo struck twice in the space of five minutes early in the second half.

Second-bottom Toulouse are now five points from safety after losing 2-1 at home to Guingamp.
Guingamp went ahead through Senegalese midfielder Younousse Sankhare’s 12th-minute opener and although Wissam Ben Yedder (64) equalised from the penalty spot, Jimmy Briand struck a 74th-minute winner for the visitors. Issa Diop was sent off for Toulouse late on.

Marseille 1 – 1Lille
January 31
Angers 3 – 0 Monaco
GFC Ajaccio 0 – 4 Montpellier
Lorient 2 – 0 Reims
SC Bastia 1 – 0 Lyon
Toulouse 1 – 2 Guingamp
Troyes 0 – 1 Nantes

Serie A results

New loan signings Ervin Zukanovic and Stephan El Shaarawy combined on their debuts to set Roma on their way to a 3-1 home win against Serie A strugglers Frosinone.
Roma took an 18th-minute lead through Radja Nainggolan, who managed to steer the ball home under pressure after being played in by Miralem Pjanic.
Frosinone were able to equalise through striker Daniel Ciofani, but early in the second half El Shaarawy acrobatically back-heeled Zukanovic’s cross into the net to put Roma on top for good.
Pjanic sealed victory for Roma with a neat finish for a late third goal.

Matteo Mancosu’s second-half penalty saw Carpi snatch a 1-1 draw against Palermo at the Stadio Alberto Braglia.
The hosts began brightly but went behind in the 24th minute as Oscar Hiljemark’s pass found Alberto Gilardino free in the Carpi box before slotting home.
The former Italy international reached 184 Serie A goals, equalling Gabriel Batistuta for 13th on the Serie A all-time scoring list.

German Denis ensured Atalanta earned a 1-1 draw against Sassuolo at the Azzurri d’Italia.
Domenico Berardi put the visitors in front but the Argentinian forward equalised after his initial spot-kick was saved by Sassuolo goalkeeper Andrea Consigli.

Carpi 1 – 1 Palermo
Atalanta 1 – 1 Sassuolo
Roma 3 – 1 Frosinone

Bundesliga results

Javier Hernandez scored twice as Bayer Leverkusen left Hannover languishing at the bottom of the Bundesliga after a 3-0 win.
Stefan Kiessling headed the hosts in front just after half-time, having previously hit the post, and two goals from Hernandez completed the victory for Roger Schmidt’s side.
A foul by Hiroki Sakai on Kiessling on the hour mark enabled Leverkusen to double their lead with Hernandez stepping up to convert the resultant penalty.
Hernandez netted his 13th goal of the season when the Mexican international held off his marker before slotting a low shot into the bottom corner of Ron-Robert Zieler’s goal, lifting Leverkusen up to fourth and into the Champions League positions.

Borussia Dortmund left it late to beat Ingolstadt 2-0 and reduce the arrears on Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich to five points on Saturday.
A late Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang brace earned Thomas Tuchel’s men all three points, but not without a struggle against a strong Ingolstadt side.
Aubameyang finally broke the deadlock with just over 10 minutes remaining, heading in Lukasz Piszczek’s cross from six yards out, albeit from an offside position.
Aubameyang’s 20th goal of the season five minutes from time finished Ingolstadt off as this time he timed his run to leave no doubts about being offside before sliding a low shot into the far corner.
Dortmund gave a professional debut to American midfielder Christian Pulisic as the 17-year-old came on in the 68th minute.

Werder Bremen came from behind to snatch a point off high-flying Hertha Berlin in a 3-3 thriller at the Weser Stadion.
Vladimir Darida and Marvin Plattenhardt put the visitors in the driving seat before half-time, but Fin Bartels gave the hosts hope midway through the second half.
Salomon Kalou restored Hertha’s two-goal lead, but a Claudio Pizarro penalty and a header from Santiago Garcia enabled Bremen to take a point from the Bundesliga clash.

Schalke climbed to fifth thanks to a 2-0 win over Darmstadt.
Leroy Sane’s determination in hooking the ball back into play from the goalline was rewarded as the ball finally fell for Max Meyer to put the visitors in front just before half-time.
Sane made it 2-0 himself early in the second half, coolly slotting the ball past Christian Mathenia to seal a comfortable victory.

Augsburg and Eintracht Frankfurt had to settle for a point apiece in a goalless draw in Bavaria with the hosts grateful to their goalkeeper for preventing worse.
Marwin Hitz almost single-handedly kept Frankfurt at bay, making the most spectacular of saves on the hour mark to deny Alexander Meier from close range with a one-handed reflex stop.

In the day’s late game, Stuttgart made it two wins out of two in 2016 with a dramatic but deserved 2-1 victory over Hamburg at the Mercedes-Benz Arena.
Artem Kravets, a new loan arrival from Dynamo Kiev, grabbed an 88th-minute clincher for the home side whose dominance was rewarded.

Augsburg 0 – 0 Eintracht Frankfurt
Bayer Leverkusen 3 – 0 Hannover 96
Borussia Dortmund 2 – 0 Ingolstadt
Darmstadt 0 – 2 Schalke 04
Werder Bremen 3 – 3 Hertha Berlin
VfB Stuttgart 2 – 1 Hamburger SV

La Liga results

Goals from Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez fired Barcelona to a priceless 2-1 win over nine-man Atletico Madrid to strike a huge blow in the Primera Division title race.
Atletico got off to a fine start at the Camp Nou as Koke gave them the lead after just 10 minutes but Messi and Suarez each struck in the space of eight minutes to turn the game around before the break.

Atletico defenders Filipe Luis and Diego Godin were sent off.
Filipe Luis landed a studs-up challenge just above Messi’s knee and was deservedly sent off, while Godin was dismissed with a second yellow card for tackling Suarez late on 65 minutes.

A frustrating afternoon for Diego Simeone’s side was later compounded as Augusto Fernandez was stretchered off with a suspected knee injury.

Bruno Soriano’s second-half penalty saw Villarreal beat Granada 1-0 and return to winning ways.
The captain converted from the spot in the 55th minute after Jean-Sylvain Babin had fouled Roberto Soldado to give Marcelino’s side a first win in three matches.
The victory takes Villarreal level with third-placed Real Madrid on 44 points ahead of Los Blancos’ game against Espanyol on Sunday.

A solitary goal by Inaki Williams fired Athletic Bilbao to a 1-0 victory at Getafe to take the Basques up to fifth.
The 21-year-old headed in the only goal of the game in the 24th minute and Athletic clung on until the end, Getafe passing up several chances to level in the second half.
The hosts also had defender Juan Cala sent off in stoppage time for a second booking and lost their first league game at home in exactly three months.

Malaga moved into the top half of the table after picking up a hard-fought 2-1 victory at in-form Eibar.
Juanpi broke the deadlock on the stroke of half-time to give the visitors the edge in an end-to-end encounter and Roque Santa Cruz sealed the points by striking at the end of the second half.
Borja Baston grabbed a consolation goal for the hosts in the last minute of stoppage time but it was not enough to prevent a first home defeat in two months for the Basques, who missed a chance to go fifth in the table.

Real Sociedad recorded only their second win in nine games to climb above Real Betis.
Firm first-half headers from Xabi Prieto and Inigo Martinez put Sociedad in control and they ran out 2-1 winners, with Betis’ solitary response coming from their top scorer Ruben Castro.
The victory saw Sociedad leapfrog Betis into 13th place and went some way to erasing memories of their 5-1 thrashing at Sporting Gijon eight days earlier.

Barcelona 2 – 1 Atletico Madrid
Eibar 1 – 2 Malaga
Getafe 0 – 1 Athletic Bilbao
Villarreal 1 – 0 Granada
Real Sociedad 2 – 1 Real Betis

FA Cup results

Manchester City marched into the FA Cup fifth round after a hat-trick from Kelechi Iheanacho helped them to a 4-0 win over Aston Villa.
The striker’s treble saw Manuel Pellegrini’s men cruise in the fifth round just days after they reached the League Cup final.
City also remain in the hunt to regain their Barclays Premier League crown and face Dynamo Kiev in the Champions League next month.
The impressive Iheanacho added to his early strike with a cool penalty before running through unchallenged in the second half to claim the match ball.
Raheem Sterling hooked in a fourth at Villa Park to ensure Sergio Aguero and David Silva were never needed from the bench.
But in 19-year-old Iheanacho, who now has eight goals this season, they have a striker who demonstrated he can be an able deputy to Aguero after he ran Villa ragged.

Alexis Sanchez scored on his first start since November as Arsenal defeated Burnley 2-1 in the FA Cup at The Emirates.
Sanchez, who had been sidelined for more than two months with a hamstring injury, laid on Calum Chambers for the opening goal of the game.
Sam Vokes then stunned The Emirates when he hauled Burnley level with a header after 30 minutes, but Sanchez completed a fine move shortly after the interval to seal the win.
Arsene Wenger vowed to field an experienced side for the fourth-round tie, but the Frenchman made nine changes to the team which started the 1-0 defeat against Chelsea last Sunday.
Olivier Giroud and Laurent Koscielny were the only survivors as Mohamed Elneny made his debut while Francis Coquelin was also back in Wenger’s side following a two-month injury lay-off.

Tottenham cruised into the fifth round of the FA Cup on Saturday after their first ever meeting with Colchester resulted in a 4-1 win.
Chadli, making his 100th appearance for the club, has now scored four goals in three games, while Eric Dier and Tom Carroll were also on target as Spurs won a fourth straight game.
Ben Davies’ own goal was a mere consolation for League One’s bottom club, whose chances were dealt a significant blow after a sickening clash of heads in the second minute.
Alex Wynter was treated by both medical teams before he was carried off on a stretcher and taken to hospital after colliding with team-mate Tom Eastman.
He had lost consciousness, but Colchester later reported he was sitting up in hospital, under observation.

Liverpool were held to a goalless draw at home to West Ham in the FA Cup fourth round, adding yet another fixture to their packed schedule.
A replay in east London next month was probably the last thing manager Jurgen Klopp wanted, having just completed a run of nine matches in 29 days in January.

Odion Ighalo came off the bench to net his 15th goal of the season with an 89th-minute strike that gave Watford a 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest in the FA Cup.
The hosts had looked set to extend their unbeaten run to 14 games in all competitions in a contest where two much-changed sides mustered little at the City Ground.

Wilfried Zaha inspired Crystal Palace to a 1-0 win over Stoke as they progressed to the fifth round of the FA Cup.
The talented winger built on his improving form and growing confidence with a fine individual goal that was enough to secure victory against such uninspired opposition.

Peterborough twice fought back from a goal down to earn a replay with West Brom as it finished 2-2 after a thrilling finale in the FA Cup at The Hawthorns.
It looked like Saido Berahino’s early strike would be all that separated the sides but three goals in eight frantic minutes mean the League One promotion hopefuls will get another chance at the ABAX Stadium next month.
Shaquile Coulthirst equalised after 79 minutes but Berahino quickly restored West Brom’s lead before substitute Jon Taylor levelled things up again with four minutes remaining.

Joshua King and Marc Pugh saved Bournemouth’s blushes in scrambling a 2-1 FA Cup fourth-round victory at League Two side Portsmouth.
Boss Eddie Howe got away with making 10 changes from the 1-1 Premier League draw at Sunderland – but only just.
Gary Roberts’ strike put a dominant Portsmouth into a deserved 1-0 half-time lead, only for Howe’s re-jig on the hour to turn the tie on its head.
Howe sacrificed the ineffectual Glenn Murray and the inconsistent Juan Iturbe, and pushed King through the middle in a switch that sent Bournemouth into the fifth round for the first time since 1989.
The men from the bottom tier of the Football League – FA Cup winners during their Premier League days in 2008 – spent the first half dominating their top-flight foes. At that point they were moving the ball – and Bournemouth – around with ease.

The Championship will still be well represented in the fifth round with Leeds, Blackburn, Hull and Reading all going through.

Sheffield Wednesday lost 3-2 at League Two side Shrewsbury.
The Shrews stunned their higher-ranked opponents with defender Jack Grimmer’s stoppage time header clinching a 3-2 win over the Owls.
Lewis McGugan had twice put the Championship side ahead but Jean-Louis Akpa Akpro and Shaun Whalley, following up Akpa Akpro’s saved penalty, levelled before Grimmer sent the League One side through to the last 16.

On-loan striker Chuba Akpom scored his first senior hat-trick as Championship leaders Hull eased through 3-1 at Bury.
Akpom opened the scoring after 14 minutes and converted his second from the penalty spot close to the hour-mark after Sone Aluko had been tripped.
The Arsenal man completed his treble after 69 minutes for the 2014 finalists, with Craig Jones finding the net late on for the League One Shakers.

Blackburn coasted home 3-0 at League Two Oxford with Ben Marshall scoring twice, one from the penalty spot, and Tony Watt adding another on his debut following his loan move from Charlton.
Oxford had beaten Premier League Swansea in the third round but were 2-0 down by half-time and never looked like producing another upset.

Reading reached the semi-finals last season and might be eyeing another cup run after thrashing League One Walsall 4-0.
Matej Vydra scored twice after Hal Robson-Kanu had opened the scoring and Danny Williams was also on the scoresheet.

Leeds won with Souleymane Doukara and new signing Toumani Diagouraga scoring first-half goals at Bolton, with Darren Pratley managing a late reply for the hosts.

On Friday evening, Manchester United secured a comfortable 3-1 win at the iPro thanks to goals from Wayne Rooney, Daley Blind, and Juan Mata to become the first team into the hat for the fifth round draw.
George Thorne’s equaliser before half-time might have had Van Gaal worrying again as Derby threatened to add their name to the list of lower league teams, which include MK Dons, Cambridge, Middlesbrough and Sheffield United, to cause United problems in the cups under his tenure.

Colchester United 1 – 4 Tottenham Hotspur
Arsenal 2 – 1 Burnley
Aston Villa 0 – 4 Manchester City
Bolton Wanderers 1 – 2 Leeds United
Bury 1 – 3 Hull City
Crystal Palace 1 – 0 Stoke City
Nottingham Forest 0 – 1 Watford
Oxford United 0 – 3 Blackburn Rovers
Portsmouth 1 – 2 AFC Bournemouth
Reading 4 – 0 Walsall
Shrewsbury Town 3 – 2 Sheffield Wednesday
West Bromwich Albion 2 – 2 Peterborough United
Liverpool 0 – 0 West Ham United
Derby 1 – 3 Manchester United

Latest Football News

Real Madrid will, should they not be restricted by a transfer ban, again try to sign David De Gea in the summer, with club president Florentino Perez determined to get his man having failed to lure him to the Bernabeu in 2015.

Real are poised to announce football’s first £1bn kit deal. The contract would see them earn £106m each year of a decade-long deal with Adidas.

Neymar has responded angrily to a journalist’s claim that the Barcelona forward was spotted in Madrid this week.

Chelsea forward Loic Remy, 29, is set to move to Leicester City in a transfer worth £11.5m.

Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink says 30-year England centre-half Gary Cahill is not for sale, despite him only starting five games in the past two months.

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone wants to swap 29-year-old striker Jackson Martinez for Chelsea’s 27-year-old forward Diego Costa.

Paris Saint-Germain centre-back Marquinhos has emerged as Real Madrid’s No.1 target to sign in order to reinforce their defence before the end of the transfer window and start of theri transfer ban.

Juan Cuadrado’s agent has contacted Barcelona over a possible move for his client, who moved to Juventus on loan from Chelsea last summer. Juve are not set to purchase the Colombian and he has also been offered to Atletico Madrid.

Manchester City and Liverpool have lost out in the race to sign Leroy Sane from Schalke, with Barcelona and 2. Bundesliga side RB Leipzig the only two clubs in with a chance of landing the 20-year-old midfielder.

Former Brazil international Adriano has signed for Miami United FC in the National Premier Soccer League as he seeks a stint in Major League Soccer.
Former Parma, Inter Milan and Roma striker Adriano, 33, has been without a club since he was released by Brazilian side Atletico Paranaense in April 2014.

Moussa Dembele is undergoing a medical at Tottenham ahead of a £6m move from Fulham. The striker may be loaned back to the Championship club, despite Spurs pushing for the 19-year-old to join their first-team squad immediately.

Inter are set to continue their pursuit for Sevilla midfielder Ever Banega and despite the Spanish club holding out for €5 million, the Italians are prepared to wait to July to take the Argentine on a free.

Tottenham are ready to reward manager Mauricio Pochettino, 43, with a new deal amid interest from Chelsea and Manchester United.

Watford are prepared to pay Liverpool £3m to sign 19-year-old striker Jerome Sinclair and spend £4m on Fiorentina’s 28-year-old defensive midfielder Mario Suarez.

Swansea defender Jordi Amat has signed a one-year contract extension.

Marseille have made an offer to sign Swansea City striker Eder on loan, with a view to a permanent £5m move this summer.

Swansea have offered Crystal Palace £7m for striker Dwight Gayle, 26, with a view to bolstering their attempt to stay in the Premier League.

Newcastle are close to signing Atletico Madrid full-back Guilherme Siqueira, 29, on loan.

Florian Thauvin is set to join Ligue 1 side Marseille on a season-long loan deal, having left Newcastle to travel to France on Saturday.

Newcastle are seeking to strengthen their attacking options and are set to move for both Roma’s Seydou Doumbia AND Swansea’s Bafetimbi Gomis.

Everton are ready to sign Locomotiv Moscow striker Oumar Niasse for £13.5 million. The 25-year-old has been watched by many top European sides in recent months.

Everton winger Aiden McGeady is poised to join Sheffield Wednesday on loan until the end of the season, having made just one appearance for the Toffees thus far this season.

Everton winger Aiden McGeady is poised to join Sheffield Wednesday on loan until the end of the season, having made just one appearance for the Toffees thus far this season.

McGeady, 29, is mulling over a move to Sevilla in La Liga following initial loan offers from Leeds United and Blackburn Rovers.

Sunderland striker Steven Fletcher, 28, is attracting interest from West Ham.

Hull City are set to sign Slovakia goalkeeper Dusan Kuciak, 30, from Legia Warsaw for £250,000 and complete a loan move for Manchester United striker Nick Powell, 21.

Aston Villa’s attempt to sign Croatian goalkeeper Lovre Kalinic from Hadjuk Split has failed after a work permit application for the 25-year-old was rejected.

Former Manchester United centre-back Rio Ferdinand greeted Nemanja Vidic’s retirement by describing the Serb as his favourite defender to play alongside. On his Facebook page,Ferdinand called Vidic a “complete and great defender” but said United players doubted his ability when he first joined the club.

Brazil forward Pato, who has joined Chelsea on loan from Corinthians, could not hide his excitement at the prospect of playing for the Blues. In a post on Instagram,he wrote: “Today I’m really happy to become a player of this huge and special club. I never gave up on my dream of coming back to play in Europe and now Chelsea is helping me to make this dream come true. Thanks a lot for all the support of my family, Chelsea team and the fans. Today is a happy day.”

Manchester United fans will get a 15% discount if they want to hire an executive box next season – but only if the club fails to qualify for European competition. The drop in price would cost the club an estimated £1m throughout the season.

Latest Football News

Real Madrid will, should they not be restricted by a transfer ban, again try to sign David De Gea in the summer, with club president Florentino Perez determined to get his man having failed to lure him to the Bernabeu in 2015.

Real are poised to announce football’s first £1bn kit deal. The contract would see them earn £106m each year of a decade-long deal with Adidas.

Neymar has responded angrily to a journalist’s claim that the Barcelona forward was spotted in Madrid this week.

Chelsea forward Loic Remy, 29, is set to move to Leicester City in a transfer worth £11.5m.

Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink says 30-year England centre-half Gary Cahill is not for sale, despite him only starting five games in the past two months.

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone wants to swap 29-year-old striker Jackson Martinez for Chelsea’s 27-year-old forward Diego Costa.

Paris Saint-Germain centre-back Marquinhos has emerged as Real Madrid’s No.1 target to sign in order to reinforce their defence before the end of the transfer window and start of theri transfer ban.

Juan Cuadrado’s agent has contacted Barcelona over a possible move for his client, who moved to Juventus on loan from Chelsea last summer. Juve are not set to purchase the Colombian and he has also been offered to Atletico Madrid.

Manchester City and Liverpool have lost out in the race to sign Leroy Sane from Schalke, with Barcelona and 2. Bundesliga side RB Leipzig the only two clubs in with a chance of landing the 20-year-old midfielder.

Former Brazil international Adriano has signed for Miami United FC in the National Premier Soccer League as he seeks a stint in Major League Soccer.
Former Parma, Inter Milan and Roma striker Adriano, 33, has been without a club since he was released by Brazilian side Atletico Paranaense in April 2014.

Moussa Dembele is undergoing a medical at Tottenham ahead of a £6m move from Fulham. The striker may be loaned back to the Championship club, despite Spurs pushing for the 19-year-old to join their first-team squad immediately.

Inter are set to continue their pursuit for Sevilla midfielder Ever Banega and despite the Spanish club holding out for €5 million, the Italians are prepared to wait to July to take the Argentine on a free.

Tottenham are ready to reward manager Mauricio Pochettino, 43, with a new deal amid interest from Chelsea and Manchester United.

Watford are prepared to pay Liverpool £3m to sign 19-year-old striker Jerome Sinclair and spend £4m on Fiorentina’s 28-year-old defensive midfielder Mario Suarez.

Swansea defender Jordi Amat has signed a one-year contract extension.

Marseille have made an offer to sign Swansea City striker Eder on loan, with a view to a permanent £5m move this summer.

Swansea have offered Crystal Palace £7m for striker Dwight Gayle, 26, with a view to bolstering their attempt to stay in the Premier League.

Newcastle are close to signing Atletico Madrid full-back Guilherme Siqueira, 29, on loan.

Florian Thauvin is set to join Ligue 1 side Marseille on a season-long loan deal, having left Newcastle to travel to France on Saturday.

Newcastle are seeking to strengthen their attacking options and are set to move for both Roma’s Seydou Doumbia AND Swansea’s Bafetimbi Gomis.

Everton are ready to sign Locomotiv Moscow striker Oumar Niasse for £13.5 million. The 25-year-old has been watched by many top European sides in recent months.

Everton winger Aiden McGeady is poised to join Sheffield Wednesday on loan until the end of the season, having made just one appearance for the Toffees thus far this season.

Everton winger Aiden McGeady is poised to join Sheffield Wednesday on loan until the end of the season, having made just one appearance for the Toffees thus far this season.

McGeady, 29, is mulling over a move to Sevilla in La Liga following initial loan offers from Leeds United and Blackburn Rovers.

Sunderland striker Steven Fletcher, 28, is attracting interest from West Ham.

Hull City are set to sign Slovakia goalkeeper Dusan Kuciak, 30, from Legia Warsaw for £250,000 and complete a loan move for Manchester United striker Nick Powell, 21.

Aston Villa’s attempt to sign Croatian goalkeeper Lovre Kalinic from Hadjuk Split has failed after a work permit application for the 25-year-old was rejected.

Former Manchester United centre-back Rio Ferdinand greeted Nemanja Vidic’s retirement by describing the Serb as his favourite defender to play alongside. On his Facebook page,Ferdinand called Vidic a “complete and great defender” but said United players doubted his ability when he first joined the club.

Brazil forward Pato, who has joined Chelsea on loan from Corinthians, could not hide his excitement at the prospect of playing for the Blues. In a post on Instagram,he wrote: “Today I’m really happy to become a player of this huge and special club. I never gave up on my dream of coming back to play in Europe and now Chelsea is helping me to make this dream come true. Thanks a lot for all the support of my family, Chelsea team and the fans. Today is a happy day.”

Manchester United fans will get a 15% discount if they want to hire an executive box next season – but only if the club fails to qualify for European competition. The drop in price would cost the club an estimated £1m throughout the season.

Latest Football News

Manchester United have put their major transfers on hold because of the increasing uncertainty over Louis van Gaal’s future as manager.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s poor season for Real Madrid has seen Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain cool their interest in him. United are more keen to sign Neymar while PSG will pursue Robert Lewandowski.

Manchester United and Manchester City will compete to sign Neymar, 23, from Barcelona, with the Brazil forward set to earn £15m a year.

United are also closing in on Benfica midfielder Renato Sanches, 18, with the Red Devils expected to pay about £30m.

Manchester City striker Sergio Aguero has spoken to Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, 28, about the positives of the city.

Meanwhile, City manager Manuel Pellegrini is not expecting any signings or sales in January – but 18-year-old forward Patrick Roberts could go out on loan.

Carlo Ancelotti wants Karim Benzema to join Bayern Munich in the summer if Robert Lewandowski leaves the Allianz Arena.

Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger, 66, is close to agreeing a new deal after overseeing a scouting overhaul.

The Gunners are considering making a second bid for Leicester City’s 19-year-old left-back Ben Chilwell, six months after seeing an offer of £3.5m rejected.

Liverpool have begun talks with Lorient over a deal to bring left-back Raphael Guerreiro to Anfield in the summer.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp says the club will not spend “Disneyland money” on new players. The German was speaking after director Ian Ayre returned from talks with Shakhtar Donetsk over their £38m-rated forward Alex Teixeira, 26.

The Reds remain in negotiations with Ukrainian club Shakhtar over Teixeira, and are considering raising their initial offer of £24.6m for the Brazilian.

Chelsea have made an approach to Paris St-Germain over a potential deal to sign their 31-year-old centre-back Thiago Silva this summer.

Ramires is set to leave Chelsea before the end of the January transfer window as the Blues look to free up funds for a summer rebuild.

Meanwhile, Chelsea have made Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri, 48, their top target to take over as manager next summer.

Louis van Gaal plans to make a move for Southampton’s 26-year-old left-back Ryan Bertrand, but might have to pay over £20m.

United could move instead for former Chelsea and Arsenal left-back Ashley Cole. The 35-year-old is available on a free after leaving Italian club Roma.

Borussia Dortmund are keen to take Chelsea winger Bertrand Traore on loan until the end of the season.

Former QPR and Tottenham midfielder Adel Taarabt, 26, is closing in on a return to AC Milan after falling out of favour at Benfica.

Southampton boss Ronald Koeman, 52, wants a reference from interim Chelsea boss Guus Hiddink, 69, to help him become the next permanent boss at Stamford Bridge.

Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech, 33, should not have been allowed to leave Chelsea, says interim Blues boss Guus Hiddink.

Leicester have signed midfielder Daniel Amartey – and he admits he can’t wait to play for a club “everyone around Europe” is talking about.

Alan Curtis has confirmed Swansea had an enquiry for Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen knocked back – but has cooled links to Jordan Rhodes.

Swansea City are keen on signing 20-year-old Barcelona forward Sandro Ramirez, but could face competition from Tottenham.

Swansea City have confirmed their interest in Sunderland’s 24-year-old Italian forward Fabio Borini, but will not consider an exchange deal involving their 26-year-old Ghana striker Andre Ayew.

Sunderland’s 33-year-old striker Jermain Defoe believes he is playing well enough to return to the England squad for Euro 2016.

Crystal Palace will have to pay unattached 31-year-old striker Emmanuel Adebayor £77,000 a week if they want to sign him before the transfer window closes

Tottenham winger Andros Townsend, 24, is desperate to move to Newcastle and West Brom forward Saido Berahino, 22, sees the switch to St James’ Park as progression, but potential deals for the pair have hit snags.

But Spurs chairman Daniel Levy is refusing to accept less than £14m for England international Townsend.

West Brom boss Tony Pulis says there have been no bids for Berahino, and has told the player to forget the “circus” of the transfer window.

Aston Villa have suffered frustration in the transfer market. Proposed deals for Hajduk Split goalkeeper Lovre Kalinic, 25, and Bordeaux defender Lamine Sane, 26, have broken down.

A steward has been sacked by Chelsea for calling former Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas a “snake”.

An Arsenal-supporting father faked an official letter from Arsene Wenger to trick his son into supporting the Gunners.

Pep Guardiola will not announce his impending move to Manchester City before the end of the season due to fears of a possible conflict of interest arising should the Citizens draw Bayern Munich in the Champions League.

Preview: Manchester United Vs Southampton

Manchester United’s performances against Newcastle United and Liverpool have been contrasting in terms of style and results. Against Newcastle, Louis Van Gaal let his players loose but the entertainment delivered came at a price. Dropped points. United returned to their rigid style at Anfield. It was not pretty but was effective and saw them claim all the points.

There seems to be an acceptance that Man United cannot combine beautiful football and a tight defence. Results like that at Newcastle and Wolfsburg will probably mean that the Man United will favour substance over style.

Manchester United have a strong record against the visitors with seven wins from the last 10 Barclays Premier League games between the sides. However, the Saints were victorious in the corresponding fixture last season. Southampton will hope that Graziano Pelle will be fit in time for the game and hopefully continue his rich goal scoring form against the Red Devils. The Italian striker has netted three goals in three Premier League appearances against the Red Devils.

Ronald Koeman may have won his last two games in the league but his team’s inconsistency means no one knows which side will turn up. This is a Southampton side capable of thrashing Arsenal 4-0 and then going on to lose their next two games against West ham and Norwich City. If they turn up at Old Trafford, they should be able to cause problems for a United side that has won just two of their last six Premier League games at home.

Team news

Manchester United

Ashley Young will require surgery on a groin injury and could miss the rest of the season which has now led to a full-back crisis at the club. Bastian Schweinsteiger remains sidelined with a knee injury while Phil Jones (ankle), Antonio Valencia (foot), Luke Shaw (leg), Marcos Rojo (shoulder) and Michael Carrick (knee) are also ruled out.

Southampton

Charlie Austin is available for the trip to Old Trafford after a £4million move from QPR last weekend. Graziano Pelle is a doubt with an ongoing knee problem while Jay Rodriguez (foot) and Florian Gardos (knee) will miss out through injury.

Preview: Norwich City vs Liverpool

NORWICH, ENGLAND – Saturday, April 28, 2012: Liverpool’s Luis Alberto Suarez Diaz scores the first goal of his hat-trick against Norwich City during the Premiership match at Carrow Road. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

There is only one possibility when Luis Suarez comes up against Norwich city. He also found a way to score and soon became their tormentor-in-chief. Unfortunately for the Reds, he has since moved to sunny Spain and surely hope should spring eternal for the Canaries.

Liverpool has endured a frustrating campaign full of inconsistency but their good form against Norwich City should give them plenty of reason for optimism. Liverpool have been victorious in nine of the last 11 Barclays Premier League meetings with Norwich City. They have however picked up just 19 points since Jurgen Klopp took charge at the club.

Liverpool’s defence have been suspect this season and new signing Norwich’s Steven Naismith will look to offer them a hard and thorough examination. Liverpool have scored just one goal in their last four Premier League matches away from home and have three of their last four away games. This combined with the fact that Norwich City are unbeaten in the last five Premier League games at Carrow Road should give them plenty of reason to believe they can make it four home wins in six games.

Liverpool have scored 22 goals in their last six Premier League games against the Canaries, but 12 of those were scored by Luis Suarez. In his absence, Liverpool will hope that Roberto Firmino produces the sort of performance he had against Arsenal.

 

Team news

Norwich City

New signings Steven Naismith and Ivo Pinto could make their club debut against Liverpool. Manager Alex Neil will also have Swiss defender Timm Klose, who joined the Norfolk club from Wolfsburg earlier this week. There are no new injury worries at the club but Andre Wisdom is unavailable to play against his parent club. Midfielder Gary O’Neil continues to serve a three-match ban following his red card at Stoke.

 

Liverpool

Adam Lallana remains a doubt for Liverpool with a minor muscle problem. Manager Jurgen Klopp will have to decide whether to play either Christian Benteke or Roberto Firmino against Norwich.

Latest Football News

Swansea have confirmed the appointment of Francesco Guidolin as the club’s head coach to work with Alan Curtis until the end of the season.
Guidolin has been brought in to work alongside interim manager Alan Curtis.

Arsenal have made a second January signing after poaching Leicester scout Ben Wrigglesworth. He helped sign the likes of Riyad Mahrez and N’Golo Kante and will officially join in the next few weeks after being put on gardening leave.

Arsenal right-back Mathieu Debuchy says he regrets moving to the club and plans to leave this transfer window.

Debuchy says he has already spoken to Aston Villa manager Remi Garde about a potential move to Villa Park.

Steven Naismith is to undergo a medical at Norwich City ahead of completing his £8.5 million move to Carrow Road from Everton.

Edison Cavani could be on his way out of Paris Saint-Germain, with Laurent Blanc unhappy with the Uruguayan’s behaviour and attitude around the squad. The striker has attracted interest from the likes of Manchester United.

Chelsea are prepared to let Bertrand Traore move to Everton on loan but only if the Toffees pay his current £40,000 a week contract in full for the duration of the loan.

Barcelona have said tests on Lionel Messi’s injury he sustained at the weekend have come back with “great news” regarding his fitness.

Real Madrid are set to make their first January signing with a €15 million move for Boca Juniors midfielder Rodrigo Betancur, though he would remain with the Argentine outfit on loan.

Gareth Bale will be out for three weeks. The Madrid star will miss at least three Liga games, though he could be back to face Roma.

Borussia Dortmund are weighing up a summer move for Chelsea midfielder Ramires to cover for the loss of Ilkay Gundogan, who is wanted by Juventus.

Robert Lewandowski is unhappy at Bayern Munich after outgoing manager Pep Guardiola was replaced by Carlo Ancelotti and wants to join Paris Saint-Germain in the summer.

Fenerbahce are the latest club to show an interest in Paris Saint-Germain forward Ezequiel Lavezzi and are willing to match any bid Chelsea make for the striker.

Simone Zaza wants to leave Juventus in order to fight for playing time and his place in Italy’s Euro 2016 squad, and Wolfsburg are keen to take him on loan until the end of the season.

Louis van Gaal has urged Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Adrien Rabiot to move to Old Trafford despite interest from Arsenal.

Arsenal and Chelsea are among the clubs battling to sign Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Granit Xhaka alongside Bayern Munich.

Chelsea are keeping tabs on Valencia centre-back Aymen Abdennour and could move for the former Monaco man in January.

Real Betis are considering making a loan move for Barcelona forward Sandro.

Morocco international Nordin Amrabat has completed a £6.1 million move from Malaga to Watford.

Chelsea have beaten Manchester United to the signing of Netherlands Under-16 captain Juan Familia Castillo, who currently plays for Ajax.

Atletico Madrid want to bring Chelsea striker Diego Costa back to the club. The 26-year-old Spain international left Atletico for Stamford Bridge for £32m in July 2014.

Costa’s bruised shin, sustained against Everton on Saturday, may prompt Chelsea to speed up a move for Corinthians forward Alexandre Pato, 26.

Newcastle have been offered the chance to sign former AC Milan playmaker Pato and Swansea’s 30-year-old French forward Bafetimbi Gomis, 30.

Gomis is unlikely to join Newcastle because Swansea do not want to sell to a relegation rival.

Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink says that, if it were down to him, he would give a new contract to captain John Terry, 35

Terry, meanwhile, is confident he will earn a one-year contract to extend his stay at Stamford Bridge beyond the end of the season.

Liverpool have joined the race to sign ex-Manchester United striker Javier Hernandez, while Mario Balotelli could join West Ham. Jurgen Klopp is unimpressed with his current crop of strikers and wants to bring the Mexican back to England.

Arsenal winger Alexis Sanchez would be open to joining either Manchester United or Manchester City but would turn down any move to Chelsea.

Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet has signed a new contract which will reportedly keep him at the club until 2021.

Southampton have rejected an £8m offer from Liverpool for their 29-year-old Republic of Ireland striker Shane Long.

Real Betis want to appoint former Real Madrid and Tottenham manager Juande Ramos as their new manager, after firing former West Brom coach Pepe Mel.

Former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness is to be released from jail on Feb. 29, 21 months into a three-and-a-half-year prison sentence for tax evasion.

A former Barcelona sporting director says the Spanish club had wanted to sign Sergio Aguero from Manchester City, but had to settle for Luis Suarez instead.

Manchester City right-back Pablo Zabaleta, 31, has indicated he could leave at the end of the season, with Italy a potential destination.

City are ready to bid for West Ham’s 17-year-old defensive midfielder Reece Oxford.

Manchester City are tracking West Ham United youngster Reece Oxford and have scouted his recent appearances for the club’s under-21 side but the Hammers favour a Championship loan for their youngest ever player.

FC Porto are not planning to sell forward Yacine Brahimi to Crystal Palace. Reports had linked the 25-year-old Algeria forward with the Premier League club.

Tottenham plan to step up their pursuit of Fulham’s 19-year-old striker Moussa Dembele, but Whites boss Slavisa Jokanovic is unwilling to sell.

Newcastle are set to increase their offer for Tottenham winger Andros Townsend after having a £10.5 million bid rejected by the north London outfit.

Sunderland remain in talks with Lorient over the signing of their 26-year-old defender Lamine Kone.

The Black Cats will make an offer for Alaixys Romao on Monday, according to According to L’Equipe. The 32-year-old has been offered a two-year contract extension by Marseille, while Toulouse and Al-Ahli also remain interested.

Former Republic of Ireland international Stephen Ireland could be poised to leave Stoke City for Saudi Arabian side Al Jazira.

West Ham are set to table a bid of around €8 million for Galatasaray striker Burak Yilmaz before the end of the January transfer window.

West Ham joint-chairman David Gold has suggested Southampton’s signing of striker Charlie Austin for £4m should not be considered a bargain “if his wages are £100,000 per week”.

Jurgen Klopp has urged the hierarchy at Anfield to move for Anderlecht midfielder Dennis Praet in January rather than in the summer.

Jerome Sinclair will leave Liverpool in the summer after failing to agree a new contract. The former Wigan loanee hopes to investigate playing opportunities in Spain.

Southampton’s Italian striker Graziano Pelle, 30, is set to leave the club following the signing of Charlie Austin, 26, from QPR.

Arsene Wenger has criticised Stoke fans for their chants toward Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey during the teams’ 0-0 draw at the Britannia Stadium on Sunday.

Leeds United’s 22-year-old full-back Sam Byram has passed a medical at Goodison Park and will be presented as an Everton player on Monday.

La Liga results

Real Madrid netted four goals inside the first 18 minutes to walk to a 5-1 win over Sporting Gijon.
Gareth Bale needed only seven minutes to build on last week’s hat-trick against Deportivo La Coruna as he headed home at the far post from a corner. And just two minutes later, Ronaldo produced a neat turn in the box to beat Gijon keeper Pichu Cuellar.
Karim Benzema then latched onto a precise Bale cross to slam home his side’s third with just 12 minutes on the clock, and Ronaldo did nothing to dampen thoughts of another record-breaking victory when he grabbed his second in the 18th minute after sweeping home from a neat cross by Daniel Carvajal.
Benzema then bagged a third before half-time and Isma Lopez picked up a consolation for Gijon in the second half.
Bale left the game after the first half, but Real coach Zinedine Zidane said he is “hopeful” the Welshman’s latest calf injury is not too serious. Benzema also left the game after suffering a knock, but Zidane said he was not seriously hurt.

Luis Suarez scored a hat trick as a fifth-minute red card to Athletic Bilbao keeper Gorka Iraizoz allowed Barcelona to run out 6-0 winners at the Camp Nou on Sunday.
Iraizoz was sent off for bringing down Suarez, who was through on goal, though Athletic complained that the Uruguayan had fouled defender Xabier Etxeitia to get into that position.
Lionel Messi converted the penalty for his sixth goal already in January.
The game was well in hand in the 31st minute when Suarez played across for Neymar to score with a chip.
The advantage allowed Barcelona manager Luis Enrique to take Messi off at half-time with what he called “a small strain” in his hamstring, but that didn’t slow the team down as Suarez got on the scoresheet just two minutes into the second half.
Neymar made a fabulous run to the touchline and fed Ivan Rakitic in the 62nd minute to make it 4-0, and seven minutes later Suarez did well the bring the ball down and score his second of the day.
His hat trick was complete with a header on 82 minutes as Barca stayed two points back of Atletico Madrid in the Primera Division table.

A goal from Filipe Luis and a double from Antoine Griezmann gave Atletico Madrid a 3-0 win at struggling Las Palmas to keep them top of the Primera Division for another week.
Defender Luis sent Juanfran’s pass into the far corner on 17 minutes to score his first goal since returning to Atletico from Chelsea, while on 68 minutes top scorer Griezmann finished off a through-ball from Koke to double the lead.
The France forward made the most of another precise pass from the midfielder in the last minute to round off the victory.

Paco Alcacer’s late equaliser saved Gary Neville’s blushes by earning a haphazard Valencia a 2-2 draw with relegation-threatened Rayo Vallecano.
Rayo took a 15th-minute lead through Jozabed but early in the second half Alvaro Negredo scored a stunning goal from 50 yards to give Valencia an equaliser they barely deserved, only for Diego Llorente to restore Rayo’s lead on 69 minutes.
Valencia’s frustrations then reached boiling point when Alcacer had what looked to be a legitimate goal ruled offside, but the striker netted again with 88 minutes gone to avoid what would have been a disastrous result for Valencia, with the home supporters greeting both the half-time and full-time whistles with more whistling of their own.
Neville’s side sit 10th in the Primera Division table after 20 games, 16 points behind the final Champions League spot, and have not won a game since Nov. 7 when they thrashed Celta 5-1.
Rayo’s last victory came that same day, against Granada, and the Vallecas club are in the midst of their worst run since 2003, when they were relegated, and they remain in the drop zone.

Getafe moved into the top half of the table by rallying for a 3-1 win at home against Espanyol.
After Hernan Perez had given the visitors the lead, Getafe struck back less than three minutes later through Pedro Leon, and Pablo Sarabia then put them ahead.
Moi Gomez added a third Getafe goal late on to seal the three points.

Valencia 2 – 2 Rayo Vallecano
Real Madrid 5 – 1 Sporting Gijon
Getafe 3 – 1 Espanyol
Las Palmas 0 – 3 Atletico Madrid
Barcelona 6-0 Athletic Bilbao

Ligue 1 results

Monaco moved above Angers into second place in Ligue 1 thanks to a comfortable 2-0 win in Lorient.
Angers’ defeat in Nice on Friday night meant that Leonardo Jardim’s men arrived in Brittany knowing that a maximum points haul would ensure they finished the 21st round behind only leaders Paris Saint-Germain in the table and second-half goals from Thomas Lemar and Joao Moutinho made sure of the victory.

Marseille moved into the top half of the table with an entertaining 3-1 win at Caen.
Michy Batshuayi gave the visitors an early lead which Georges-Kevin N’Koudou doubled when he fired home on the hour.
Ronny Rodelin reduced the deficit for Caen before Bouna Sarr’s powerful volley sealed the points for Marseille.

Alexander Soderlund struck a late winner as St Etienne returned to form with a hard-fought 1-0 win over bitter rivals Lyon at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.
Soderlund fired the only goal of the game in the 76th minute as the home side rode their luck to secure only their second win in their last six Ligue 1 matches.

Lorient 0 – 2 Monaco
Caen 1 – 3 Marseille
Saint-Etienne 1 – 0 Lyon

Serie A results

Genoa pulled clear of the relegation zone with a 4-0 home win over 10-man Palermo. Suso got the ball rolling with his fourth-minute opener, the former Liverpool midfielder trumping Stefano Sorrentino in a one-on-one.
The hosts remained dominant but needed the dismissal of Sinisa Andjelkovic for two bookable offences before they really let loose. Leonardo Pavoletti was first to exploit the gap, his looping header beating Sorrentino in the 71st minute, and Tomas Rincon volleyed home a third for Genoa only five minutes later.
Pavoletti then added gloss to the result with a last-gasp scissor kick.

Juventus blew Udinese away 4-0 at the Stadio Friuli to record their 10th consecutive Serie A victory.
The reigning champions are now second after a brace from Paulo Dybala and goals from Sami Khedira and Alex Sandro confirmed an emphatic away win before the half-time whistle.
Udinese, who had Danilo sent off in the concession of a penalty, suffered a 4-0 defeat at home for the second time this season having lost to Inter Milan by the same scoreline last month.

Luciano Spalletti was denied victory on his return to the Roma dugout as Hellas Verona forced a 1-1 draw at the Stadio Olimpico.
After a seven-year absence from the capital, Spalletti has replaced Rudi Garcia as Giallorossi boss and Radja Nainggolan gave him some early cause to be cheerful with a 41st-minute opener.
Giampaolo Pazzini’s penalty on the hour mark then secured a deserved share of the points for Hellas, who remain rooted to the foot of Serie A, 12 points adrift of safety.

Lazio fought back from two goals down to salvage a 2-2 draw at Bologna.
Emanuele Giaccherini’s long-range free-kick got Bologna up and running inside two minutes and Mattia Destro doubled the hosts’ lead when beating the offside trap after 18 minutes at the Dall’Ara.
The tide turned against Roberto Donadoni’s side when they lost Adam Masina to a red card in the 69th minute, with Antonio Candreva converting the subsequent penalty. Lazio scented blood and Senad Lulic grabbed a share of the spoils with 13 minutes remaining.

Goals in either half from Alberto Paloschi and Lorenzo Tonelli saw Chievo and Empoli share a 1-1 draw at the Stadio Marc’Antonio Bentegodi.
Former AC Milan striker Paloschi notched inside seven minutes as he caught Lukasz Skorupski off his line with an awkward header from near the penalty spot.
Empoli were level within two minutes of the start of the second half. Piotr Zielinski’s long-range drive forced Albano Bizzarri into a scruffy save and Tonelli was there to convert an easy tap-in.

Ten-man Carpi claimed three crucial points in their battle to beat the drop by downing Sampdoria 2-1 at the Stadio Alberto Braglia.
Lorenzo Lollo fired the Biancorossi into a 28th-minute lead after racing onto Gaetano Letizia’s saved shot, but Sampdoria were level six minutes later, with Joaquin Correa firing past Vid Belec.
The hosts were gifted the opportunity to win when Fernando fouled Antonio Di Gaudio. Jerry Mbakogu did the honours and Carpi held on despite losing Riccardo Gagliolo to a late red card.

AC Milan scored early and late to defeat Fiorentina 2-0.
Carlos Bacca only needed four minutes to put Milan on top with a low shot across goal following a swift counter-attack, and the hosts’ lead held up until Kevin-Prince Boateng doubled it two minutes from time.
The result brought Milan up to sixth in Serie A, while Fiorentina missed a chance to move past Inter into third place.
Mario Balotelli came on with three minutes to play in his first appearance since September after groin surgery.

Genoa 4 – 0 Palermo
Bologna 2 – 2 Lazio
Carpi 2 – 1 Sampdoria
ChievoVerona 1 – 1 Empoli
Roma 1 – 1 Hellas Verona
Udinese 0 – 4 Juventus
AC Milan 2 – 0 Fiorentina

EPL Results

Wayne Rooney scored for the fourth game in a row as Manchester United secured a 1-0 Premier League victory over rivals Liverpool at Anfield.
While Rooney was the match-winner with the visitors’ only shot on target, David de Gea was the man who made the 1-0 win possible with a string of saves and was the far busier of the two goalkeepers.
It was just Rooney’s sixth goal in 24 appearances for both Everton and United against Liverpool and his first at Anfield for 11 years but it edged him to within seven of Sir Bobby Charlton’s club record of 249 and lifted his side back up to fifth, two points behind Tottenham.
Wayne Rooney (176 goals for Man Utd) has now overtaken Thierry Henry (175 for Arsenal) for the most goals for a single club in Premier League history.
Rooney has now scored in four successive games for Manchester United for the first time since March 2012.
United have scored with all four of their shots on target against Liverpool this season in the Premier League.

Arsenal have reclaimed top spot in the Barclays Premier League with a goalless draw at Stoke on an afternoon when both goalkeepers earned the plaudits.
The Gunners needed just a point to nudge back ahead of Manchester City and Leicester at a stadium where they have only won once in the Premier League era, and they were attempting to break their Britannia Stadium hoodoo without injured playmaker Mesut Ozil.
Petr Cech kept out Joselu and Bojan Krkic in quick succession before saving with his feet from the former late on to record the 172nd Premier League clean sheet of his career.
The Gunners were without German midfielder Ozil, the man leading the Premier League in assists, due to a foot injury while Alexis Sanchez was not included either despite nearing a return from a hamstring problem.

New Swansea head coach Francesco Guidolin saw his side ease their Premier League relegation worries with a hard-fought 1-0 win over Watford.
A rare Ashley Williams goal, headed home from inside the six-yard box after 27 minutes, was enough to give Swansea only a third win in 18 league attempts and lift them out of the bottom three at the expense of Newcastle.
It was far from pretty at times but that will not worry a Swansea side who inflicted a fourth straight league defeat on a Watford side suffering their worst run of the season.
Guidolin’s appointment was confirmed before kick-off and the former Parma, Palermo and Udinese coach took his place in the stand as Swansea sought to escape the bottom three.

Liverpool 0 – 1 Manchester United
Stoke City 0 – 0 Arsenal
Swansea 1-0 Watford

Latest Football News

Manchester United are planning to spend around £120 million in the summer rather than make January signings, though they realise top targets Gareth Bale and Thomas Muller are unlikely to be available.

Real Madrid still want to buy Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea, 25, in the summer despite their transfer ban.

Real want United to sign midfielder Toni Kroos, 26, to help them fund a bid for Paris St-Germain striker Edinson Cavani, 28.

David De Gea has cooled reports of a move to Real Madrid and insists he wants to win trophies at Manchester United and become a legend for the club.

Former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, 74, would be willing to help Ryan Giggs if Louis van Gaal loses his job.

Jose Mourinho believes he will succeed Van Gaal, 64, as United manager within six months, and has sounded out some of his former assistants about joining him at Old Trafford.

Mourinho, 52, turned down the chance to return to Real Madrid in order to resume his Premier League career.

Barcelona sent a scout to watch 21-year-old Everton defender John Stones at Chelsea on Saturday.

Barca are confident of taking Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey to the Nou Camp, and have made signing the 25-year-old one of their summer priorities, with a fee of up to £60million being reported.

Liverpool are prepared to pay £25m for Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy, 29, this summer.

Chelsea are looking at Crystal Palace defender Scott Dann, 28, as a replacement for captain John Terry, 35.

The Stamford Bridge side are also looking at Leicester playmaker Riyad Mahrez, 24.

West Ham are set to bid £10m for Liverpool’s Italian striker Mario Balotelli, 25, who is on loan at AC Milan.

West Brom are demanding £7m for Callum McManaman, 24, after QPR and Middlesbrough became the latest clubs to register an interest in the winger.

Swansea are prepared to sack head coach Alan Curtis after the club slipped into Premier League relegation zone less than two weeks after appointing the 61-year-old as full-time successor to Garry Monk.

Newcastle are looking to take Swansea striker Bafetimbi Gomis, 30, to St James’ Park.

The Toons have made a £25 million bid for Lyon striker Alexandre Lacazette as they look to take advantage of the Ligue 1 outfti’s financial situation.

If Lacazette cannot be convinced to join the heavy French foreign legion at St James’
Park, it’s claimed Newcastle will turn their attention to Stoke’s Senegalese frontman Mame Biram Diouf.

Chelsea are weighing up making a £20 million bid for Leicester City winger Riyad Mahrez, who is seen as a potential replacement for Eden Hazard.

John Terry praised his Chelsea teammates for their fighting spirit to earn a 3-3 draw against Everton at Stamford Bridge on Saturday, but “doesn’t really care” if his controversial late goal was offside.

Manchester City have put contract talks with teenage striker Kelechi Iheanacho on hold after a row broke out over which group of agents is representing the youngster.

Having already had a £11 million bid for Swansea City’s Andre Ayew rejected, the Black Cats are now set to offer £14m for the Ghana international.

Roma has settled their contract issues with Ashley Cole and paved the way for LA Galaxy to sign the left back, with an announcement possibly coming Tuesday.

Various reports both in the USA and Italy on Sunday suggest Cole is set to sign a one-year contract with the Los Angeles Galaxy, where he will link up with his former England team-mate Steven Gerrard.

Chinese Super League side Jiangsu Suning are set to offer Yaya Toure a £230,000 per week contract and Manchester City £10 million to buy the midfielder.

Louis van Gaal has refused to allow Victor Valdes join Newcastle on loan, with the Spain international not allowed to join another Premier League club.

Leicester City want to take Manchester United youngster Andreas Pereira on loan, with the midfielder having been told he can leave for “the right club”.

The Foxes are hopeful of sealing a deal for FC Copenhagen’s Daniel Amartey by the end of the week.

Arsenal defender Mathieu Debuchy has revealed that he will quit the club in January as he wants to play for France at Euro 2016.

Arsene Wenger says he faces even more hostility from Stoke City fans these days than from Tottenham supporters.

Louis van Gaal says he has learned to control himself on the touchline, but that he used to be like new Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.

Klopp has become something of a cult figure in the Premier League for his animated antics in the dugout, but as Man United prepare to face Liverpool, Van Gaal insists that officials are not bothered by anything the managers do.

Luis Enrique says that Neymar’s style of play is not “offensive” and has warned Sunday’s opponents Athletic Bilbao that any retribution for the Brazilian’s flick over Unai Bustinza’s head in the closing stages of the 2014-15 Copa del Rey final won’t be tolerated.

At Monday’s Ballon d’Or awards, Paul Pogba said to Lionel Messi: ”I love to play with you at the club”.

Everton are planning a £10 million bid for Derby County midfielder Will Hughes, who has previously been linked to Liverpool.

QPR are keen to take Everton full-back Bryan Oviedo on loan while Championship rivals Blackburn Rovers want Toffees midfielder Darron Gibson.

Watford have joined the battle to sign QPR winger Matt Phillips with West Brom and Bournemouth also interested.

Posters of former manager Jose Mourinho are on sale in Chelsea’s club shop for £1 each, a month after the Portuguese left.

Real Madrid director general Jose Angel Sanchez has claimed that FIFA is looking into Premier League clubs over breaches of the same regulations that saw Atletico and Real Madrid given transfer window bans last week.

A potential return to Bologna for Southampton midfielder Gaston Ramirez, 25, has hit a snag over the length of contract on offer.

Norwich manager Alex Neil says his club are interested in signing 27-year-old defender Timm Klose from Wolfsburg.

Singer Ed Sheeran may be taking a self-imposed break from social media,but that didn’t stop Newcastle legend and BBC pundit Alan Shearer tweeting a photo of the two of themat Newcastle’s 2-1 win over West Ham on Saturday.

Newcastle owner Mike Ashley gave away £2.5m of winter jackets from his Sports Direct firm after his side beat West Ham on Saturday.

Ligue 1 Results

Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored a late header as runaway leaders Paris Saint-Germain overcame a poor first half to beat Toulouse 1-0 and move provisionally 23 points clear at the top of the French league on Saturday.
Chasing a fourth straight title, PSG have won 18 and drawn three of 21 games to completely crush the competition, but this was not a convincing performance.

Bordeaux stretched their current unbeaten run in all competitions to nine games with a slender 1-0 win against Lille.
Following an even first half, Les Girondins made the decisive breakthrough in the 51st minute when Wahbi Khazri’s excellent work allowed Cheikh Diabate to head home.

Troyes wasted the perfect opportunity to claim their first league win of the season after squandering a two-goal lead to lose 4-2 at home to Rennes.
The hosts found themselves comfortably ahead inside the opening 15 minutes, with Fabien Camus smashing a wonderful effort into the top corner before Corentin Jean scored from close range.
However, Rennes turned the game on its head as Fallou Diagne scored penalties either side of a Ousmane Dembele strike to send the visitors into the break ahead.
Substitute Kamil Grosicki added extra gloss late on, escaping the hosts’ defence and finishing from a tight angle.

GFC Ajaccio and Reims took a vital point each in their fight for survival following a 2-2 draw on the isle of Corsica.
Ajaccio got off to the perfect start in the second minute when Aissa Mandi set up Boutaib for a simple finish before Nicolas De Preville levelled on 20 minutes after latching on to Jordan Siebatcheu’s pass.
Just after the half-hour mark, De Preville got his second of the game in style after beating Kader Mangane before cleverly lifting the ball over Clement Maury.
Ajaccio claimed a point, though, with just under 20 minutes to play when Damjan Djokovic netted after Mohamed Larbi’s near-post header came back off the post.

Montpellier were left perilously close to the bottom three after suffering a 1-0 defeat at fellow strugglers Bastia.
The hosts had to wait until early in the second half to make the breakthrough when Julien Palmieri and Florian Marange combined to tee up Floyd Ayite for the only goal.

Nantes came back from two goals down to deny Guingamp’s hopes of moving out of the bottom three in a 2-2 draw at the Stade du Roudourou.
EAG raced into a commanding first-half lead when Yannis Salibur’s delivery presented Nicolas Benezet with a straight-forward finish at the back post before roles were reversed when Benezet picked out Salibur to double the hosts’ lead.
Nantes managed to reduce the deficit just after the hour mark when Christophe Kerbrat netted beyond his own keeper before claiming an unlikely point at the death when Youssouf Sabaly levelled.
Guingamp were reduced to 10 men in added time when Younousse Sankhare was
show a straight red following a clash with Kolbeinn Sigthorsson.

Toulouse 0 – 1 Paris Saint Germain
Bordeaux 1 – 0 Lille
GFC Ajaccio 2 – 2 Reims
Guingamp 2 – 2 Nantes
SC Bastia 1 – 0 Montpellier
Troyes 2 – 4 Rennes

La Liga Results

Villarreal squandered the chance to go ahead of Real Madrid as they were held to a goalless draw by rejuvenated Real Betis.
In Juan Merino’s first league game since Pepe Mel was sacked, the interim coach helped Betis end a five-match losing streak in all competitions.
The 0-0 draw takes them up to 14th in the standings, while Villarreal stay fourth after their run of six consecutive league wins came to an end.

Sevilla stayed in sixth after striker Kevin Gameiro scored two goals just before halftime to help beat Malaga 2-1 for its ninth consecutive home win.
Gameiro ran onto a long free kick by Adil Rami and lifted the ball over goalkeeper Carlos Kameni to open for the hosts before halftime.
He made it 11 league goals this season just two minutes later when Sevilla struck on the break, this time using a deft flick with the inside of his boot to beat Kameni.
Charles scored in the second half for Malaga, which had its first defeat in eight rounds.
Sevilla’s Vicente Iborra and Malaga’s Arthur Boka were sent off for two yellow cards each.

Celta Vigo got two goals from John Guidetti to earn a 4-3 win after weathering bottom-side Levante’s spirited second-half rally
Guidetti turned in Iago Aspas’ back pass to break through in the first half, and five minutes later the striker chipped home his second.
Aspas added a third from a solo effort, but Celta staggered after Levante’s Deyverson and Pedro Lopez scored twice in a three-minute span with 20 minutes left.
Fabian Orellana’s goal appeared to have finished Levante off, until Jose Morales added drama to the end after scoring in the 88th.
Manuel “Nolito” Agudo watched from the stands amid speculation of a transfer to Barcelona as his Celta broke a three-game losing streak to remain in fifth place.

Sevilla 2 – 1 Malaga
Celta Vigo 4 – 3 Levante
Villarreal 0 – 0 Real Betis
Real Sociedad 1 – 1 Deportivo La Coruna

Serie A Results

Napoli opened up a four-point lead at the top of Serie A after Gonzalo Higuain’s brace secured a 3-1 come-from-behind victory at home to Sassuolo.
The hosts recovered from the shock of Diego Falcinelli’s third-minute penalty to equalise in the 19th minute through Jose Callejon’s first league goal of the season.
Higuain subsequently netted three minutes before the interval and then again in stoppage-time — taking him to 20 league goals for the campaign — to strengthen Napoli’s title push. Sassuolo remain sixth.

Inter Milan were held to a 1-1 draw at Atalanta, as Napoli continued to pull away in the table.
Inter lost first place to Napoli last weekend after suffering a shock 1-0 home defeat to Sassuolo and there was more frustration for Roberto Mancini’s men on Saturday against a side that had lost their previous four matches.
The Nerazzurri quickly equalised after falling behind in the 17th minute — own goals from Inter defender Jeison Murillo and his Atalanta counterpart Rafael Toloi cancelling each other out — but the visitors could not find a winner.

Torino won for the first time in 2016 as they saw off struggling Frosinone 4-2 at the Stadio Olimpico.
The home side went into an early lead through Ciro Immobile’s penalty but Frosinone equalised through Paolo Sammarco’s strong header.
A brace from 22-year-old striker Andrea Belotti, who had scored only one goal this season before the game, helped the home side go into half-time with a 3-1 lead.
Frosinone were given a lifeline when Torino defender Danilo Avelar put the ball in his own net but only eight minutes later Torino regained their two-goal advantage as Marco Benassi scored the last in a lively game.

Atalanta 1 – 1 Inter
Torino 4 – 2 Frosinone
SSC Napoli 3 – 1 Sassuolo

EPL Results

Sergio Aguero scored twice as Manchester City beat Crystal Palace 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium to, at least temporarily, move top of the Premier League.
City dropped points in midweek when they were held to a goalless draw by Everton, but Manuel Pellegrini’s side suffered no such problems in finding a breakthrough against Palace.
Fabian Delph put the hosts ahead in the 22nd minute with a long-range effort which Wayne Hennessey ought to have saved, but there was little the Eagles goalkeeper could do to stop Aguero making it 2-0 five minutes before half-time with a strike which deflected in off Scott Dann.
Aguero then finished off an excellent team move also involving David Silva, Yaya Toure and Kevin De Bruyne in the 68th minute before unselfishly setting up David Silva to complete the scoring six minutes from time.

John Terry’s equaliser deep into added time atoned for his earlier own goal and earned Chelsea a 3-3 draw with Everton at Stamford Bridge.
Ramiro Funes Mori’s late goal appeared to have earned the Toffees a first league win at Stamford Bridge in 21 years, but Terry flicked in on his 700th club appearance.
Terry’s own goal and a Kevin Mirallas strike put Everton 2-0 up, but Chelsea scored twice in quick succession to restore parity.
A howler from Tim Howard allowed Diego Costa to net and Cesc Fabregas’ deflected strike levelled matters.
Worse was to follow for Chelsea when Costa limped off and Funes Mori turned in fellow substitute Gerard Deulofeu’s cross.
But Terry converted after a late bombardment, to the fury of the visitors after seven minutes’ stoppage time had been signalled by the fourth official, to earn a scarcely-believable point.
Chelsea are now unbeaten in seven since Jose Mourinho’s departure, with Guus Hiddink avoiding a first loss of his second spell in caretaker charge.

A Christian Eriksen brace saw Tottenham come from behind to beat struggling Sunderland 4- 1 and reaffirm their own top-four Premier League ambitions.
Sam Allardyce’s side took the lead through Patrick van Aanholt’s second goal in a week.
But Eriksen levelled just 91 seconds later before Mousa Dembele put Spurs ahead after the break, with Eriksen’s second and a Harry Kane penalty – the first deflected off Sunderland debutant Jan Kirchhoff, who then conceded the spot-kick – wrapping up a 4-1 victory for Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

Bournemouth recorded the biggest win of their short Premier League tenure after cruising to a 3-0 victory against Norwich City.
Dan Gosling opened the scoring for the home side with 10 minutes gone before Charlie Daniels converted from the spot shortly after half-time.
Benik Afobe, Bournemouth’s record signing, then opened his account for the club following a cool finish with 15 minutes remaining.

Ayoze Perez and Georginio Wijnaldum scored as Newcastle United beat West Ham 2-1 at St James’ Park to move out of the Premier League relegation zone.
Debutant Jonjo Shelvey turned in just the kind of performance which convinced the Magpies to spend £12million to sign him from Swansea City, but he could face retrospective action over an off-the-ball body-check on Hammers striker Enner Valencia which did not appear to be spotted by referee Neil Swarbrick.
Wijnaldum’s goal – the Dutchman’s ninth of the season – proved enough to secure a first win in seven games in all competitions and condemn the visitors to a first defeat in 10.
West Ham’s half-time substitute Nikica Jelavic scored to half the deficit.

James Ward-Prowse scored twice as Southampton beat West Brom 3-0 at St Mary’s to climb into the top half of the Premier League.
Saints splashed out £4million to sign Charlie Austin from QPR on Saturday morning in a bid to pep up their misfiring attack.
And just a couple of hours later Austin watched from the stands as Saints rediscovered their goalscoring touch in a comfortable victory.
England Under-21 midfielder Ward-Prowse was an unlikely goal hero, having previously scored just once in the Premier League.
But he doubled that tally with just five minutes on the clock after Craig Dawson fouled Saido Mane on the corner of the penalty area.
Tadic was introduced from the bench shortly after the hour mark and got on the scoresheet just eight minutes later.

Aston Villa fought back to earn a 1-1 draw against Leicester City, who moved back to the top of the Premier League with the point at Villa Park.
Shinji Okazaki put Leicester ahead in the 28th minute with a close-range which had to be confirmed by goal-line technology, but Riyad Mahrez missed the chance to make it 2-0 five minutes later when his penalty kick was saved by Mark Bunn after Aly Cissokho had handled his shot.
The save lifted the Villa fans and players, who earned themselves a deserved share of the spoils when substitute Rudy Gestede fired in via a deflection

Tottenham Hotspur 4 – 1 Sunderland
FC Bournemouth 3 – 0 Norwich City
Chelsea 3 – 3 Everton
Manchester City 4 – 0 Crystal Palace
Newcastle United 2 – 1 West Ham United
Southampton 3 – 0 West Bromwich Albion
Aston Villa 1 – 1 Leicester City

Latest Football News

Southampton have completed the signing of QPR striker Charlie Austin in a cut-price £4million deal.

Barcelona are set to join Chelsea and Real Madrid in the race to sign 21-year-old Everton centre-back John Stones.

The Spanish giants are searching for defensive reinforcements for next season and are also watching Villarreal’s Adrian Marin and Athletic Bilbao’s Aymeric Laporte.

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is ‘fed up’ of Cristiano Ronaldo over his refusel to obey tactical decisions and his decision to vote for Carlo Ancelotti for the Fifa Coach of the Year award.

Cristiano Ronaldo says he is open to a move to MLS in the future, in an interview in GQ magazine.

With a Fifa transfer ban to come into force at the end of the month, Real Madrid want to move quickly to sign Schalke striker Leroy Sane and Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea.

Former Real Madrid star Manuel Velazquez Villaverde has died at the age of 72.
Velazquez won six league titles and three Copa del Rey trophies between 1965 and 1977 and was part of the legendary Real Madrid side that won their sixth European Cup in 1966.

Chelsea are considering making a summer move to bring former manager and current Leicester boss Claudio Ranieri back to Stamford Bridge.

Meanwhile, Chelsea playmaker Willian, 27, wants to sign a lengthy new contract with the club, despite the Blues struggling in the lower half of the Premier League.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp, 48, says he was sounded out about taking over at Manchester United in 2013 by Sir Alex Ferguson but turned down the chance to go on the shortlist of candidates to take over at Old Trafford.

Klopp says he could not have left Borussia Dortmund, where he was boss at the time, as “it was April and in the middle of the planning for next season”.

Having signed several Southampton players in the last few years, Liverpool could return to to sign another player from Saints as the Reds may make an £8m move for striker Shane Long.

Manchester United want Tottenham’s head of coaching and player development, John McDermott, to oversee their academy system.

Arsenal striker Danny Welbeck, 25, midfielders Francis Coquelin, 24, and Jack Wilshere, 24, are all back in training but still weeks away from first-team action.

Watford are hoping to complete the £6.5m signing of Malaga’s 28-year-old winger Nordin Amrabat.

Napoli are still searching for a midfielder and could move for Porto’s unsettled Gianelli Imbula.

Besiktas is ready to buy again in Serie A. After Mario Gomez, Turkish side wants Neto but Juventus don’t sell him. Next Summer the things could change.

A-League club Central Coast Mariners have signed former Liverpool midfielder Luis Garcia having sold Anthony Caceres to Manchester City earlier this week.
Garcia, 37, left Indian Super League side Atletico Kolkata in 2014 but recently played in a Liverpool Legends match against a Socceroo Legends team.

Riechedly Bazoer will not move to Napoli in January because he rejected the Italian side. Ajax agreed a deal worth €25m with Napoli.

Toulouse striker Wissam Ben Yedder could move to Tottenham for €8 million this January. The forward could be loaned back to the Ligue 1 side until the end of the season. Sevilla are interested, too.

Utrecht forward Sebastien Haller has turned down the opportunity to make a €9 million move to Norwich. The France Under-21 man wants to play European football.

Jurgen Klopp expects Liverpool’s clash with Manchester United to be a highlight of the season, and has spoken of his respect for former United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, whom he called “the John Lennon of football.”

Louis van Gaal has warned his Manchester United players ahead of the trip to Liverpool to learn a lesson from Steven Gerrard and remain calm at Anfield.
Van Gaal has won each of his last three meetings with Liverpool since becoming United boss in summer 2014, and will hope to maintain his perfect record at Anfield on Sunday.
T
“We have played each other four times – in the USA and the league. You can see it in the faces of the players. Last season for example, Gerrard is on and sent off within 30 seconds.

Longtime Zinedine Zidane fan Aleix Vidal has wished his idol no success in his new post as Real Madrid boss, the current Barcelona man has revealed.

Three-time World Cup winner Pele underwent a small operation to repair a hip replacement he had in 2012, according to the Brazilian’s long-time press officer Pepito.

Newcastle midfielder Cheick Tiote has agreed personal terms with Shanghai Shenhua and will depart for China, where he will earn £70,000 a week, for £8 million.

Newcastle United look set to tie up their third transfer of the winter window with a move for Tottenham winger Andros Townsend.

Newcastle’s new £12m midfielder Jonjo Shelvey, 23, is looking forward to a new challenge after being left “nearly in tears” by his experience at Swansea City.

Swansea fans can swap their Jonjo Shelvey shirts for free following the 23-year-old midfielder’s £12m move to Newcastle.

Sergio Aguero has been described as a mixture of Lionel Messi and Thierry Henry by his Manchester City teammate Bacary Sagna.

Chelsea and West Brom have been charged by the FA for failing to control their players during Wednesday’s draw at Stamford Bridge.

Guus Hiddink has confirmed that Radamel Falcao’s latest injury is “very serious” and would not be drawn on whether the Colombian has already played his last game for Chelsea.

Major League Soccer side LA Galaxy are said to have offered Aston Villa defender Joleon Lescott a three-year deal.

Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard, now 36, is being courted by MLS side Colorado Rapids.

Serie A duo Fiorentina and Roma are tied in a race to sign Sassuolo defender Francesco Acerbi.

Real Madrid director general Jose Angel Sanchez says he expects many more European clubs to be hit by transfer bans for breaking youth transfer regulations — and that cases are already advanced against some Premier League clubs.
FIFA has announced that Madrid and Atletico Madrid have been banned from registering new players in the next two transfer windows after committing irregularities in youth transfers — similar to the punishment handed out in 2014 to fellow La Liga outfit Barcelona.

Premier League side Norwich City have agreed an €8.5 million fee for Wolfsburg defender Timm Klose.

Tottenham had a couple of special guests at their training ground and the club posted a picture on Instagramof the pair meeting manager Mauricio Pochettino along with the message: “Mauricio welcomed two very special guests to Hotspur Way today, former @fcbarcelona stars @carles5puyol and Ivan de la Pena!”

Swansea have rejected an approach from Sunderland for their 26-year-old Ghanaian forward Andre Ayew.

Sunderland manager Sam Allardyce wants the FA to resist Fifa’s plans to scrap the emergency loan system.

Bologna have reached an agreement with Sunderland to turn 30-year-old Italian midfielder Emanuele Giaccherini’s loan move to Italy into a permanent deal.

Ola Toivonen will remain at Sunderland on loan until the end of the season after Rennes ruled out a return to France for the 29-year-old midfielder.

Middlesbrough, Derby and Celtic are interested in taking 19-year-old Manchester City forward Bersant Celina out on loan.

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp produced a fist-pumping celebration on the run after his side’s equaliser in a 3-3 draw with Arsenal on Wednesday and Reds keeper Simon Mignolet says the German even does it in training.

Former Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon does not believe Atletico Madrid’s transfer ban will be a reason for manager Diego Simeone, who has been linked with Chelsea, to leave the Spanish club.

Latest Football News

Real Madrid are planning to spend £250m in January after they were given a transfer ban, with £80m-rated Chelsea attacking midfielder Eden Hazard, 25, their top target. The Belgium international is joined on the list by Manchester United keeper David de Gea, 25, Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba, 22, Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski, 27, and Manchester City forward Sergio Aguero, 27.

Tottenham’s England striker Harry Kane, 22, and Everton centre-back John Stones, 21, are also targets for Real Madrid.

Real will not entertain bids for star names such as Cristiano Ronaldo or Gareth Bale in the summer following their transfer ban.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich wants Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri to return to Stamford Bridge at the end of the 2015-16 season, following the Foxes unexpected title challenge.

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is ‘fed up’ of Cristiano Ronaldo over his refusel to obey tactical decisions and his decision to vote for Carlo Ancelotti for the Fifa Coach of the Year award.

Paris Saint-Germain are getting ready to launch a bid for Barcelona star Neymar after their pursuit of Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo was deal a blow by the Blancos transfer ban.

Napoli are to make a move for Torino defender Nikola Maksimovic and could send Omar El Kaddouri and Mirko Valdifiori the other way as part of the deal.

Priced around the €11 million mark, Fiorentina see Cristiano Tello, currently on loan at Porto from Barcelona, as a solution to their wing troubles.

Former Real Madrid and AC Milan forward Robinho is a target for Sion, the Swiss club’s president has confirmed.
Robinho, who also played for Manchester City, is a free agent after leaving Chinese club Guangzhou Evergrande and Sion president Christian Constantin has reportedly flown to Sao Paulo to conduct negotiations with the 31-year-old.

Barcelona defender Gerard Pique could be punished for his recent social media use after La Liga’s “anti-violence committee” has reviewed his actions and sent a case to its discipline committee.

Liverpool are closely monitoring Athletic Bilbao youngster Inaki Williams, who has a release clause of €20 million. The Basques don’t want to part with the 21-year-old striker, and are trying to tie him to a new deal.

Newcastle midfielder Cheick Tiote has agreed personal terms with Shanghai Shenhua and will depart for China, where he will earn £70,000 a week, for £8 million.

Chelsea are close to signing Brazil striker Alexandre Pato, 26, from Corinthians.

But the Blues will have to match Corinthians’ £10m valuation of the Brazilian to boost their striking options.

And Chelsea manager Guus Hiddink has been told he must sell France striker Loic Remy, 29, before he can bring in Pato.

Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich believes his chances of landing top managerial target Diego Simeone have been improved after the Argentine’s current club Atletico Madrid were given a transfer ban.

The Stamford Bridge club are confident Branislav Ivanovic will sign a new contract after negotiations over a new one-year deal saw clauses introduced that could see him stay with the Blues until 2018.

Roma have confirmed the appointment of Luciano Spalletti as their new coach.
Spalletti, who already coached the Italian club between 2005 and 2009, arrived in the Eternal City from Miami on Thursday after meeting with the club’s president James Pallotta and general manager Mauro Baldissoni.
The 56-year-old replaces Rudi Garcia, who was sacked on Wednesday.

Nolito has distanced himself from a potential return to Barcelona, saying he is happy at Celta Vigo.
Nolito, 29, has reportedly attracted the Primera Division champions’ attention by scoring seven goals in 10 appearances this season.
However, the Spain international, who is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury, has said he has unfinished business at Celta.

Sunderland have completed the signing of striker Dame N’Doye on loan from Turkish club Trabzonspor.
The 30-year-old Senegalese international, who had a productive six month spell in the Premier League with Hull City last season, will stay with the Black Cats until the end of the current campaign and wear the number 10 shirt.

Crystal Palace are set to offer former Arsenal and Tottenham striker Emmanuel Adebayor a route back to the Premier League.

Manchester City are planning to overhaul their squad in the summer to help Pep Guardiola implement his style. John Stones is their main target while Wilfried Bony and Eliaquim Mangala will be sold.

Stoke City striker Mame Diouf is being targeted by Bundesliga side Wolfsburg, according to multiple reports in Germany.
Wolfsburg are on the hunt for a new striker after top scorer Bas Dost was ruled out for six weeks due to breaking a bone in his foot during the club’s warm-weather winter training camp, and Diouf is widely reported to be on their wish list.

Despite signing Basel’s Mohamed Elneny, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger is keen to further bolster his midfield in the summer, with Victor Wanyama a player the Gunners are monitoring.

Fiorentina are keen to bring Liverpool winger Lazar Markovic to Serie A in the summer, with the former Benfica man currently on loan at Fenerbahce.

Liverpool and Tottenham are monitoring 20-year-old winger Yasin ben el-Mhanni, who has impressed this season for Ryman Premier League side Lewes and has just started a trial at Crystal Palace.

Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri wants sign West Brom’s England Under-21 striker Saido Berahino.

But Albion say the 22-year-old is not for sale and have warned Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United not to make any bids.

The Foxes are close to signing FC Copenhagen’s 21-year-old Ghana defender Daniel Amartey for £5m.

Southampton striker Graziano Pelle has emerged as a cut-price option for Juventus in the summer as they look to bolster their attacking options.

Saints defender Maya Yoshida tweeted his delight at goalkeeper Fraser Forster making his first start since March after recovering from a knee injury. “Glad to see our monster back last night,” wrote the Japan international.

Leeds United have accepted a bid for full-back Sam Byram, with the fee set to begin at around £3 million.

But, West Ham are hoping to beat Everton to a deal for Leeds’ 22-year-old English right-back Byram.

Florian Thauvin could be about to end a nightmare spell at Newcastle United by returning to former club Marseille on loan.

The 22-year-old only joined the Magpies in August in a £13million deal involving Remi Cabella going the other way, but L’Equipe and La Provence both report he is “in talks” to return to Ligue 1 far sooner than expected.

Tottenham have begun talks with Fulham over a player-plus-cash deal for youngster Moussa Dembele. Maurcio Pochettino wants cover for Harry Kane, but the 19-year-old is also being watched by the likes of Juventus and Man City.

Spurs coach Mauricio Pochettino has compared playing against ‘top class’ Harry Kane to facing legendary Brazilian duo Romario and Ronaldo.

The inclusion of the sons of Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane in FIFA’s list of players irregularly signed by the club makes FIFA’s transfer ban against Los Blancos ‘absurd’, club general director Jose Angel Sanchez said on Thursday.

Barcelona mayor Ada Colau has slammed Espanyol fans for displaying a derogatory banner targeting pop star Shakira in Barcelona’s 2-0 Copa del Rey win on Wednesday.
Shakira is the partner of Barcelona defender Gerard Pique, who had mocked Espanyol fans’ “marvellous minority” moniker in the aftermath of the two sides’ round of 16 first-leg tie at Camp Nou, wondering aloud if they could fill their stadium for the return fixture.
During Wednesday’s second leg, Espanyol supporters responded by unfurling a banner reading “Shakira es de todos” (Shakira is everyone’s), incensing the city’s female mayor Colau.

Italy forward Ciro Immobile has rejoined Torino on loan from Borussia Dortmund for the rest of the season.
The Serie A club also have an option for a permanent move for the player who won previously on their books for the 2013-14 season.
Immobile, 25, scored 22 goals in 33 league games for Torino that season but has struggled since signing with Dortmund in the summer of 2014.
He played mostly as a substitute last season before going on loan to Sevilla last fall.

Andrea Pirlo has thrown cold water on a possible move back to Serie A, saying, apart from friends and family, he doesn’t miss Italy.

He has played in the Champions League and the World Cup and boasts three Premier League titles, but Joe Cole has revealed he is back cleaning his own boots after joining League One side Coventry City.

Newcastle are ready to make a £12m bid for Tottenham’s 24-year-old England winger Andros Townsend

Bournemouth record signing Tyrone Mings has tweeteda picture of his recovery from a knee injury. The 22-year-old full-back, who was ruled out for the season in September, wrote “1 step closer” with an emoticon of a bulging bicep.

Swansea City have identified Roma striker Seydou Doumbia as the man to help lead them away from relegation trouble.

Latest Football News

Manchester United sponsor Adidas wants to reunite Barcelona and Argentina forward Lionel Messi, 28, and 44-year-old outgoing Bayern Munich manager Pep Guardiola, who the sportswear company represents, at Old Trafford.

United manager Louis van Gaal faces the biggest game of his tenure at Liverpool on Sunday, with the club’s hierarchy worried about the club’s Champions League qualification prospects.

Manchester United are close to signing 24-year-old Austria centre-back Aleksandar Dragovic from Dynamo Kiev in a £16m deal.

Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have been banned from registering new players for the next two transfer windows, FIFA has announced.
The FIFA Disciplinary Committee announced that the two clubs “violated several provisions concerning the international transfer and first registration” of players under the age of 18.

Arsenal have confirmed the signing of Egypt midfielder Mohamed Elneny from Basel.
Elneny, 23, becomes Arsenal’s first signing of the January transfer window and adds to Arsene Wenger’s options in defensive midfield in the absence of the injured Francis Coquelin.

Wenger has confirmed that the Egyptian could be available for the game against Stoke on Sunday.

Paris St-Germain manager Laurent Blanc says striker Edinson Cavani’s behaviour has become a problem and he would let the 28-year-old Uruguay international leave.

Out of contract at the end of the season, Ezequiel Lavezzi is set to leave Paris Saint-Germain. Inter, Chelsea and Barcelona have been joined in the hunt for the Argentina attacker by Galatasaray.

Chelsea have made a £40m offer for Real Madrid’s 26-year-old Germany midfielder Toni Kroos, who has also been linked with Liverpool and Manchester United.

Chelsea’s Ghana left-back Baba Rahman, 21, is growing frustrated with his lack of first-team football since joining the Blues from Augsburg in August.

Romelu Lukaku, 22, is set to leave Goodison Park at the end of the season and will target a move to Paris Saint-Germain or Real Madrid.

Machester United have joined the chase for Sporting Clube de Portugal striker Islam Slimani, after the £13 million rated man has netted 13 goals in 16 games so far this season.

Real Madrid have rejected Liverpool’s approach for Martin Odegaard as they want the 17-year-old to remain with them until he is ready for regular first-team football.

If Real Madrid move to sign Alvaro Morata in the summer, Juventus will swoop for Paris Saint-Germain forward Edinson Cavani. The Uruguayan’s wages could be a stumbling block, though.

Antoine Griezmann is set to pen a new contract with Atletico Madrid that will see his wages increase along with his release fee, which will jump to €100m from €80m, but he will remain tied to the club until 2020. PSG and Real Madrid both want him.

While Liverpool may not land Pato – if indeed they are even interested in him – they will continue to monitor Red Bull Leipzig winger Emil Forsberg, 24, as they consider a summer offer

Liverpool, Real Madrid and AS Monaco remain locked in a three-way battle over 17-year-old Monaco forward Kylian Mbappé

Aston Villa supremo, Randy Lerner has taken a further step back from running Aston Villa by appointing Steve Hollis as club chairman.

Villa manager Remi Garde is hoping to sign Bordeaux’s Senegal defender Lamine Sane, 28, on loan for the rest of the season.

Tottenham and West Ham are on red alert after reports in France claimed Wissam Ben Yedder is ready to force a move out of Toulouse this month

West Brom striker Saido Berahino, 22, may have to stay at the club for the rest of the season as Tottenham are unwilling to pay the £23m they offered for him last summer, while Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino is unsure he the right player in his search for a forward.

However, Stoke City are preparing a bid for Berahino and think they can beat Spurs to the West Brom striker’s signature.

Bournemouth are keen to take Manchester City teenager Patrick Roberts with the winger having struggled to make an impact at the Etihad Stadium.

Swansea City are weighing up whether to bring Aston Villa winger Scott Sinclair back to his former club in January.

Stoke City are preparing a bid for Saido Berahino and think they can beat Tottenham Hotspur to the West Brom striker’s signature.

Charlton forward Ademola Lookman is wanted by Manchester City and Chelsea, with Everton and Tottenham also expressing an interest in the 18-year-old.

Jonathan De Guzman will “probably” leave Napoli in January to return to the Premier League, with his agent refusing to rule out a return to former club Swansea City.

Everton scout Ian Atkins checked on Leeds United right-back Sam Byram during Tuesday’s 2-1 defeat by Ipswich Town

Barcelona forward Neymar, 23, has been ordered to appear in court over his transfer to the Nou Camp from Brazilian club Santos in 2013.

Watford believe they are in pole position to sign Malaga keeper Carlos Kameni, who is also wanted by Bournemouth

Diego Costa squared up to Albion goalkeeper Boaz Myhill at full-time, having earlier been involved in an angry exchange of words with defender Jonas Olsson. He also tried to get Claudio Yacob, who was already on a yellow card, sent off for tripping him over.

Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has criticised West Brom’s approach of trying to “provoke” Chelsea in the 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge.

Guus Hiddink had no issue with Diego Costa’s behaviour against West Brom – or the fact that the striker punched the tunnel wall after the game.

French club Toulouse gave their fans letters to try to excuse them from work so they could attend the club’s cup tie against Marseille, which was scheduled for 4pm French time on Wednesday. Toulouse emerged 2-1 winners.

A journalist has hit back at Louis van Gaal after being called a “fat man” by the Manchester United manager.
The Dutchman was making a point regarding the media’s criticism of England captain Wayne Rooney, who has returned to form with four goals in his last three matches.
“You have criticised him, I don’t,” Van Gaal said, before walking away and pointing at journalist Neil Custis.
“You too. Fat man. There,” he added.
Custis has now responded to the Old Trafford boss, writing inThe Sun: “You are right Louis I am fat.
“At least I can hold my hand up to my own failings. Shame others can’t.”

French League Cup Results

Lucas Moura came off the bench to keep holders Paris St Germain on course to retain their Coupe de la Ligue crown with the winning goal in the 2-1 quarterfinal victory over Lyon.
Lucas was only on the Parc des Princes pitch for seven minutes before scoring the decisive goal, which extended his side’s winning run in all competitions to nine games.
The runaway Ligue 1 leaders were 1-0 up after 17 minutes when Adrien Rabiot pounced on a rebound from Ezequiel Lavezzi’s shot.
Corentin Tolisso equalised for Lyon three minutes before the break, but former Manchester United midfielder Angel Di Maria fed Lucas late on to seal a semifinal place for Les Parisiens.

Toulouse also progressed to the last-four stage after Martin Braithwaite’s extra-time goal sealed a 2-1 win over Marseille.
Toulouse, who moved out of the Ligue 1 relegation zone following a 3-1 victory over Reims on Saturday, took a 25th-minute lead through striker Wissam Ben Yedder.
Just two minutes later, though, Georges-Kevin N’Koudou equalised for Marseille with a curling shot from the edge of the box.
The game seemed set for penalties after a goalless second half, but Denmark international Braithwaite sealed Toulouse’s semifinal place with a right-footed finish nine minutes into extra time.

Spot-kicks were needed at the Stade du Roudourou where Lille emerged triumphant from their clash away to Guingamp.
The home side had the best of the chances throughout the goalless 120 minutes, with Jimmy Briand hitting the woodwork and Yassine Benzia seeing his 20th-minute header disallowed.
Lille keeper Vincent Enyeama was also called into action a number of times and the Nigeria international came to the fore once more in the shootout.
Enyeama saved from Nicolas Benezet and Dorian Leveque before Eric Bautheac scored to secure a 4-2 win on penalties for Lille.
Earlier on Tuesday, Bordeaux defeated Lorient 2-0, courtesy of a 44th minute goal by Jaroslav Plasil and an own-goal by Florent Chaigneau.

Toulouse 2 – 1 Marseille
Guingamp 0 – 0 Lille
Paris Saint Germain 2 – 1 Lyon
Bordeaux 2 – 0Lorient

Copa del Rey Results

Munir El Haddadi scored both goals as Barcelona beat Espanyol 2-0 on Wednesday to ease into the Copa del Rey’s quarterfinals with a 6-1 victory on aggregate.
Two days after collecting his record fifth Ballon d’Or award, Lionel Messi played El Haddadi through with a long pass to score Barcelona’s opener in the 32nd minute.
The 20-year-old El Haddadi netted his second with two minutes left.
“This is good for Munir, the fact that he participated in many facets today,” coach Luis Enrique said about the little-used forward. “He has a knack for scoring.”
After two ill-tempered derbies in the past two weeks- a 0-0 draw in the Spanish league before Barcelona’a 4-1 first-leg win that featured 20 yellow cards and two reds- the return match at RCDE Stadium was a tame affair, only brought to life by Messi.

Villarreal crashed out of the competition after being beaten 1-0 at home by Athletic Bilbao.
The Yellow Submarine squandered a two-goal lead to lose 3-2 to last year’s beaten finalists in the first meeting and they were unable to overcome the deficit on home soil.
Bilbao forward Inaki Williams shrugged off a tackle before breaking the deadlock in the first period with his 10th goal of the season to make it 4-2 overall.

Former Manchester City striker John Guidetti converted a first-half penalty as Celta Vigo saw off Cadiz to progress.
Celta, 3-0 winners in the first leg, won 2-0 on the night thanks to goals from Guidetti and Dejan Drazic.

Las Palmas are also through thanks to another 3-2 victory over La Liga’s surprise package Eibar.
In the first leg, Figueroa Momo’s 90th-minute goal had given Las Palmas an away win after two Eibar players were sent off and they were on course for the next round when David Junca’s own goal put them ahead in the second leg.
Two goals in as many minutes from Borja Ekiza and Sergi Enrich levelled it up at 4-4 on aggregate, though, before first-leg hero Momo and David Garcia scored to send Las Palmas through.

Atletico Madrid booked their spot in the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey with a 3-0 second-leg victory over Rayo Vallecano.
The sides had drawn the first leg 1-1 but the Primera Division leaders ran out comfortable winners at home.
Angel Correa made the breakthrough five minutes before half-time with a curling right-footed strike from just inside the area, and a late double from Antoine Griezmann completed the victory.
Griezmann netted from close range in the 80th minute and on the counterattack in stoppage time.
Atletico have won 13 of their last 15 games, while conceding only five goals.

Valencia were virtually assured of their last-eight spot after putting four past Granada in the first leg but they kept their foot down in a 3-0 win that earned them a 7-0 aggregate victory.
A 42nd-minute goal from Wilfried Zahibo put the visitors ahead, Paco Alcacer doubled the lead in the 63rd minute and a Pablo Piatti penalty rounded off the scoring.

Deportivo La Coruna 0 – 3 Mirandes
Sevilla 4 – 0 Real Betis

Celta Vigo 2 – 0 Cadiz
Villarreal 0 – 1 Athletic Bilbao
Espanyol 0 – 2 Barcelona
Las Palmas 3 – 2 Eibar

EPL Results

Joe Allen struck in the final minute as Liverpool held Arsenal to a 3-3 draw at Anfield as the Gunners saw their lead at the top of the table reduced.
The Reds took the lead after 10 minutes when Roberto Firmino fired a low shot past Petr Cech after Emre Can’s effort had fallen into his path.
But the equaliser arrived just four minutes later when Aaron Ramsey latched on to Joel Campbell’s ball and fired past Simon Mignolet.
The Reds were ahead again on 19 minutes when Firmino grabbed his second of the match, curling an unstoppable effort past Cech.
And amazingly it was 2-2 on 25 minutes when Giroud headed home from a corner with Mesut Ozil claiming yet another assist of a stellar season.
Giroud then grabbed his second of the game and 18th of the season on 55 minutes, turning smartly and firing into the corner of Mignolet’s net.

James McClean halted Chelsea’s rise up the Premier League table as West Brom came from behind twice to secure a 2-2 draw at Stamford Bridge.
West Brom created a handful of early chances but the hosts took the lead through an unlikely source in Azpilicueta, who found the back of the net after bombing forward to meet a cross at the far post.
The Baggies responded well to the early setback and hauled themselves level when Craig Gardner’s driven shot from the edge of the area nestled into the bottom corner.
Guus Hiddink’s side took the lead once again in the 73rd minute after Gareth McAuley turned the ball into the his own net when trying to prevent Kenedy from connecting with Willian’s low cross.
The Baggies came from behind for a second time when McClean struck four minutes from time as the visitors earned a deserved point.

Manchester City were held to a frustrating but entertaining 0-0 draw as Everton earned a point in their Premier League clash at the Etihad Stadium.
Raheem Sterling was controversially denied a late penalty as City saw their title aspirations dealt a blow by Roberto Martinez’s dogged outfit.

A dramatic late header from Robert Huth put Leicester City joint-top of the Premier League with a slender 1-0 victory against Tottenham.
The two teams drew 2-2 in their FA Cup clash just three days ago but the high-flying Foxes were the victors in the the latest battle at White Hart Lane as Huth was on hand to convert Christian Fuchs’ corner in the 83rd minute.
Despite recalls for Tottenham’s Harry Kane and fit-again Jamie Vardy – one of nine changes for Ranieri’s visitors from the weekend’s game – neither could get their names on the scoresheet.

A hat-trick from Jermain Defoe helped struggling Sunderland end a six-game losing streak and secure a vital 4-2 win against 10-man Swansea.
Sam Allardyce’s men took the early lead in south Wales when a poor kick out from Lukasz Fabianski was punished by Jermain Defoe, but the Swans were soon level when Gylfi Sigurdsson equalised from the penalty spot in the 21st minute.
Swansea were then reduced to ten men after full-back Kyle Naughton saw a straight red card for a foul on Yann M’Vila, yet they went ahead with an emphatic finish from Andre Ayew just before the half-time whistle.
Patrick Van Aanholt made the game all-square again four minutes after the restart and Sunderland went on to retake the lead as Defoe added his second of the evening with a cool finish just past the hour mark.
Defoe then ensured he would be taking home the match ball when he prodded in with five minutes left which sees Sunderland narrow the gap to 17th-placed Swansea to one point.

Southampton impressively outplayed and outworked Watford to secure a 2-0 Barclays Premier League victory that should signal the end of their poor run.
On an evening when Watford were as poor as the hosts were intense, goals in each half from Shane Long and Dusan Tadic took Southampton into 12th place and within two points of their underwhelming visitors.

Jonathan Walters, Joselu and a Ryan Bennett own goal helped Stoke to a 3-1 victory over 10-man Norwich at the Britannia Stadium on Wednesday evening.
Gary O’Neil was sent off for an utterly needless slide tackle on Ibrahim Afellay.
After then falling behind to Jonathan Walters’ 49th-minute effort, Norwich did well to level six minutes later through a cracking Jonny Howson strike.
But Stoke regained the lead via Joselu’s smart finish in the 67th minute, and the away side then shot themselves in the foot again as Ryan Bennett’s own-goal 12 minutes from time sealed victory for the hosts.

Chelsea 2 – 2 West Bromwich Albion
Manchester City 0 – 0 Everton
Southampton 2 – 0 Watford
Stoke City 3 – 1 Norwich City
Swansea City 2 – 4 Sunderland
Liverpool 3 – 3 Arsenal
Tottenham Hotspur 0 – 1 Leicester City

Latest Football News

Manchester United have turned their attention to Valencia’s Portuguese midfielder Andre Gomes, with Atletico Madrid having placed a block on any bids for Saul Niguez.

Saul Niguez’s father says his son is happy where he is at the moment despite being aware of speculation of interest from Manchester United — while confirming that the youngster’s release clause is set at€45 million.

Zinedine Zidane wants to make Paul Pogba his first Galactico signing at Real Madrid, with the bidding for the Juventus midfielder starting at €100 millon.

Barcelona have completed a loan deal for Celta Vigo attacker Nolito. The 29-year-old joins until the end of the 2015-16 season with Barca having the option to buy at €18 million. If they choose not to, Celta will recieve a penalty fee.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s statue on his home island of Madeira has been vandalised with Lionel Messi’s name and shirt number painted on it.

Barcelona are set to pay Leroy Sane’s €37 million Schalke release clause, amid interest from Manchester City and Liverpool. Reports suggest that the 20-year-old may have already agree a six-year deal with Barca.

Former Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic, 34, has left Serie A side Inter Milan by mutual contest and is considering a move to the MLS.

United are lining up a €30 million move for 16-year-old Milan goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, should David de Gea leave Old Trafford in the summer.

Ezequiel Lavezzi’s agent has said the Paris Saint-Germain attacker is in talks with Chelsea but Inter Milan remain favourites for his signature.

Spain’s national court has ordered Neymar to testify in an investigation into alleged irregularities involving his transfer to Barcelona, with the Brazil captain set to appear on Feb. 2.
The court says former Barcelona president Sandro Rosell, current club chief Josep Bartomeu and Neymar’s parents, also will have to appear before a judge.
The national court last year rejected Neymar’s request to throw out a probe into the irregularities.

Arsene Wenger is said to have changed his mind regarding the quality of former youth product Oguzhan Ozyakup and is willing to shell out £9.3 million to re-sign the Besiktas star.

The Gunners are said to have approached Dinamo Zagreb with a £12 million bid for long-time target Marcelo Brozovic, currently on loan with Inter, though the Croatian club are likely to hold out for a larger sum.

Arsenal are set to announce the signing of Mohamed Elneny from FC Basel on Thursday. The finer details have been finalised after the midfielder flew into London to complete his move.

The Gunners are said to have approached Dinamo Zagreb with a £12 million bid for long-time target Marcelo Brozovic, currently on loan with Inter, though the Croatian club are likely to hold out for a larger sum.

Bayern Munich playmaker Mario Gotze is set for talks with the club’s sporting director Matthias Sammer amidst rumours of a summer move to Liverpool.

The Reds have agreed a deal in principle to sign Schalke’s Joel Matip. The centre-back is seeking a new challenge after spending seven years in Gelsenkirchen, and will join the Anfield side on a free transfer in the summer.

Alexandre Pato is said to prefer a move to Stamford Bridge rather than Anfield as the Brazilian looks set to leave Corinthians and return to Europe.

Despite a series of goalkeeping blunders, Simon Mignolet has been handed a contract extention with Liverpool that ties him to the Anfield side until 2020.

Ezequiel Lavezzi’s agent has said the Paris Saint-Germain attacker is in talks with Chelsea but Inter Milan remain favourites for his signature.

With Chelsea woefully short on striking options through injuries, Guus Hiddink is weighing up moves for West Brom’s unsettled Saido Berahino and AC Milan frontman Carlos Bacca.

Hiddink has said he doesn’t know when Radamel Falcao will be fit to return for Chelsea as the on-loan Colombia international continues to struggle with injuries and admits the team could face a striker crisis if Diego Costa or Loic Remy were to sustain injuries.

But he is also considering other possibilities, including Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy, 29 and former Arsenal, Manchester City and Tottenham striker Emmanuel Adebayor, 31.

Barcelona forward Luis Suarez will serve out his two-match ban for his role in a Copa del Rey tunnel dustup after the Spanish federation appeals committee overruled the Catalan club’s bid on Tuesday.

Stoke manager Mark Hughes has dismissed rumours that Austria forward Marko Arnautovic, 26, is asking for £100,000-a-week to remain at the club long term.

West Ham striker Nikica Jelavic is on the brink of leaving the London club, with Chinese Super League side Guangzou Evergrande favourites to sign the 30-year-old.

Spurs chief Daniel Levy will not sanction any loan moves for Andros Townsend, instead demanding any interested parties shell out £14 million for the out-of-favour winger.

Miroslav Klose looks set to end his illustrious career at the end of the 2015-16 season. The veteran striker is said to be eyeing a post-playing career in coaching.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has confirmed that striker Divock Origi has undergone surgery on a knee injury.
“It was not really surgery, it was a clean-up of his knee,” said the former Borussia Dortmund boss.
“Now he is back [at Melwood] and everything is okay. He is on time and hopefully we can use him in a few weeks.”

West Ham striker Andy Carroll has bemoaned his injury luck as he faces yet another spell on the sidelines with a hamstring injury.
Carroll limped out after just 15 minutes in the victory over Bournemouth,with reports suggesting the tear to his hamstring is likely to keep the one-time England regular out of action for up to two months.

Sunderland are considering a renewed bid for Lorient’s Ivorian defender Lamine Kone after their first attempt broke down.

The Black Cats want to bring in two more players in the transfer window if they complete the loan deal for 30-year-old former Hull striker Dame N’Doye.

Franck Ribery has told Sport Bild he is delighted that Carlo Ancelotti will coach Bayern Munich next season, revealing that the Italian tried to sign him for Chelsea in 2009.

Turkish champions Galatasaray are said to be negotiating with QPR over a possible move for in-form striker Charlie Austin. Newcastle and Southampton are also in the race to sign the 26-year-old.

Newcastle’s search for striking reinforcements has taken a new twist after it emerged that Papiss Cisse will be sidelined for a month after undergoing surgery.
It is understood the 30-year-old Senegal international will be out for four to five weeks after having a procedure to address the groin problem which has seen him miss the last five games.

Though an initial offer of €25 million was refused by Lyon, Alexandre Lacazette could yet move to Newcastle in January if their bid is upped to €30 million.

Due to Joel Campbell’s cool displays in high pressure games this season, The Gunners are set to offer the Costa Rican a new deal at the Emirates.

Leicester are the latest club to scout Walsall left-back Rico Henry, 18, who has impressed for the club this season.

West Ham are said to be preparing a £6 million bid for the Andrej Kamaric, who has fallen down the pecking order at Leicester.

Manchester City are ready to make a move for Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic, with the Serbia international’s current contract at Stamford Bridge set to expire at the end of the 2015-16 season.

City boss Manuel Pellegrini says he is not seeking cover for central defender Vincent Kompany, 29, despite uncertainty over when the Belgium international may return from a long-term calf injury.

Celtic are set to take Manchester City midfielder Bersant Celina, 19, on loan until the end of the season.

Kevin De Bruyne had a agreed a deal with Bayern Munich before signing for Manchester City, according to his agent, though Bayern could not reach an agreement on the transfer fee with Wolfsburg.

Roma are close to reappointing former head coach Luciano Spalletti, after the Italian flew out to Miami to meet owner James Pallotta, with Rudi Garcia on the verge of losing his job.

Watford striker Alessandro Diamante, 32, is set to join Serie A side Atalanta on loan after just 64 minutes of Premier League action this season.

Bournemouth are the latest club to show an interest in Queens Park Rangers winger Matt Phillips, 24, who is also a target for West Brom.

West Brom have reportedly had a £7.5million bid for Sunderland and Aston Villa target Cheikh N’Doye rejected by his club Angers.

An 83-year-old qualified referee had to step in during a Southern Counties East League match when the assistant referee injured himself.

Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge said he is not ruling out a potential European Super League.
Rummenigge, who is also the chairman of the European Club Association (ECA), said there is still the possibility that there could be a 20-team league featuring clubs from Spain, England, Germany, Italy and France.

A father has banned all video games from his home after his son accidentally spent over £5,000 on Fifa 2016.

Watford striker Alessandro Diamante, 32, is set to join Serie A side Atalanta on loan after just 64 minutes of Premier League action this season.

An Aston Villa fan named Aston tweeted on 26 September 2015 that he will be taking time out from Twitter….
He returned to action on 12 January 2016 after his side beat Bournemouth.