Foot Ball news Alerts

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Seven years after ending a modest playing career the Portuguese is about to embark on a sixth managerial job It is easy to see why Everton identified Marco Silva as their ideal head coach last October but less easy to understand why they persisted in doing so after his time at Watford unravelled in off-pitch acrimony and on-pitch chaos. The manner in which his performance in Hertfordshire went from immaculate to inadequate must at the very least have made what might once have been a straightforward decision significantly more complicated. Everton will believe they have the status to keep Silva’s ego satisfied for a bit longer than the two months and nine matches that separated his first game with the Hornets from the decision that he could do better . The coach’s history certainly suggests that what follows is likely to be fun as well as dramatic. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2LLi5Py

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Sign up now! Sign up now! Need to re-subscribe because of this GDPR business? Sign up now! Management is about making decisions, and the decisions made by former members of England’s golden generation have generally looked dodgy from the start. Gary Neville opted to begin his career as a gaffer at a struggling club in a country where he couldn’t understand a word of what anyone said, and Steven Gerrard has gone and done the same . Silly old Sol Campbell, meanwhile, went and got himself all badged up without realising there is something about him that seems to make many potential employers consider him unworthy of becoming a peer of Steve Evans and Joseph Barton . Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2J4dzKh

• Portuguese takes over from Sam Allardyce at Goodison Park • Silva was a target for Everton last autumn when at Watford Everton have appointed Marco Silva as their new manager with the 40-year-old’s commitment to “attractive, attacking football” convincing the club he is the right man to replace Sam Allardyce. Silva signed a three-year contract with the Goodison Park club on Thursday having been the first choice of Farhad Moshiri, Everton’s major shareholder, to succeed Allardyce since his sacking just over a fortnight ago. Moshiri had wanted the Portuguese coach to succeed Ronald Koeman in October but Watford rejected Everton’s advances for their new manager and potential compensation of over £10m. Watford then sacked Silva in January, blaming an “unwarranted approach” for a loss of focus and downturn in results. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2JgItlL

• Chelsea wanted to redevelop Bridge into 60,000-seater stadium • Club ‘doesn’t have time frame for reconsideration of decision’ Chelsea’s new stadium project has been put on hold “due to the current unfavourable investment climate”. The club are looking to redevelop Stamford Bridge into a 60,000-seat stadium and were hopeful of taking up residency in 2021. “Chelsea has put its new stadium project on hold. No further pre-construction design and planning work will occur,” a statement said. “The club does not have a time frame set for reconsideration of its decision. The decision was made due to the current unfavourable investment climate.” Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2J3norA

• Swiss supreme court clears Peru captain to play in Russia • Court of Arbitration for Sport says it will not object The captain of Peru has been cleared by a Swiss supreme court judge to play at the World Cup, despite a doping ban. Paolo Guerrero tested positive for a metabolite of cocaine at a World Cup qualifying game against Argentina in October. He argued the stimulant had not been performance enhancing and was accidentally consumed in contaminated tea. Switzerland’s supreme court said it has granted an interim order to freeze Guerrero’s 14-month ban for a positive test. “Paolo Guerrero can take part in the next World Cup,” the court said. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2xrB5j2

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Maybe it’s the first your remember, the first you attended or the one when you had nothing better to do but watch every minute As Cat Stevens (and PP Arnold and Rod Stewart and Sheryl Crow ) nearly put it, the first cup is the deepest. It’s hard to recreate the magic of the first World Cup you remember, no matter how many times older fans tell you the tournament had more charm back in their day. Italia 90 was so dull that it led to the new back-pass law but, start talking about great World Cups to fans in their late 30s, and you’ll hear about Gazza, Pavarotti and Totò Schillaci. So what that the tournament has the lowest goals-per-game ratio in World Cup history. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2slSB3a

• Fredericks’ contract with Fulham expires this summer • West Ham adamant Marko Arnautovic will not be sold West Ham are confident of signing the right-back Ryan Fredericks, whose contract with Fulham expires this summer. Fredericks is also a target for Crystal Palace among other clubs and Fulham will try to persuade the 25-year-old to extend his contract after they were promoted to the Premier League . Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2LKN7Hb

This week’s roundup also features some football legends being rubbish and sprinting cricketers 1) Juan Mata, The Nicest Man In Football™, loves a corporate video. In this one he shows off his Mancunian accent . It does not sound like he has consulted Nicky Butt on this one. It is a great reminder of other footballers who do not need to put any effort into the local twang, such as Peter Lovenkrands , Jan Molby and Vincent Kompany . And speaking of people being nice, here are lots of Liverpool fans being nice to Steven Gerrard . 2) Nigeria are coming to Wembley on Saturday as both teams get ready for the World Cup, so it’s only right we remember when they made their mark on the global game . Alternatively, there is Yakubu Aiyegbeni’s almost impossible miss against South Korea from 2010. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2LbHMYv

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• ‘I’m confident in my own abilities,’ Lampard says • Lampard takes over from Gary Rowett at Pride Park Frank Lampard has been named as Derby County’s new manager after signing a three-year deal at Pride Park. The former Chelsea and England midfielder has been looking to take his first step into management and confirmed over the weekend that he had been talking with officials at Derby. The East Midlands club, who lost to Fulham in the Championship play-off semi-finals , have been without a manager since Gary Rowett left to take over at Stoke City last week but have now confirmed the 39-year-old’s appointment. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2smwVnn

European Champions have a favourable draw and excellent attacking options but an ageing defence could let them down This article is part of the Guardian’s 2018 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 32 countries who have qualified for Russia. theguardian.com is running previews from two countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 14 June. Portugal will play this year’s World Cup as European champions , so any dark horse tag has disappeared, but this also means the inferiority complex that has often conditioned the team has been overthrown. The head coach, Fernando Santos, refuses to speak of his team as favourites for the tournament, although he does suggest the ambition is the same as at Euro 2016. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2sj6EXi

Today’s fluff is flying... José Mourinho was spotted watching this week’s friendly between Russia and Austria, and that immediately set tongues wagging about which player, in particular, he was interested in. Since Kevin Wimmer didn’t start and has just agreed to flee Stoke for Hannover, anyway, the obvious answer is David Alaba , who is gifted and versatile enough to solve at least three of Manchester United’s problem positions. But the word from more enlightened sources is that Mourinho was, in fact, running the rule of Marko Arnautovic , whose strength and spikiness makes him more palatable to Mourinho than callow youths such as Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial. West Ham’s owners are not keen to sell Arnautovic but it is believed that they would be prepared to let him go in return for around £50m and the promise of a few thousand more followers on twitter. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2H6M8NY

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• Ex-PFA chair says England player’s tattoo is his own business • ‘Why not let the guy go about his work in peace?’ Clarke Carlisle, the former chairman of the Professional Footballers’ Association, believes the c riticism of Raheem Sterling’s tattoo of an M16 assault rifle is “unfair” and has called for the England forward to be left in peace as he prepares for next month’s World Cup. Sterling, who is training with Gareth Southgate’s squad before England’s first warm-up match against Nigeria at Wembley on Saturday, featured on the Sun’s front page for a second day in a row on Wednesday despite his explanation that the symbol had been chosen as a tribute to his father, who was murdered in Jamaica when the Manchester City player was two years old. Richard Taylor, whose son Damilola was killed after a street attack in Peckham in 2000, has accused Sterling of “glamorising” gun violence and urged him to apologise to “the families of gun victims”. Continue reading... from Football | T...

By MICHAEL POWELL from NYT Sports https://ift.tt/2LJbLIj

Sign up now! Sign up now! Need to re-subscribe because of this GDPR business? Sign up now! Four days have passed now, so it’s probably time to cut Loris Karius a little slack. After all, he’s not exactly the first keeper to make a howling mistake in the biggest game of his life. There’s Sven Ulreich only last month in the Big Cup semi-finals . Oliver Khan in the 2002 World Cup final . Peter Bonetti at Mexico 70 . And the Fiver’s personal favourite, Laurent Di Lorto, in goal for France against Italy in the quarter-finals of the 1938 World Cup, volleyballing a soft shot into his net, then running beak-first into the post . At least Loris didn’t suffer that slapstick indignity upon spiking Gareth Bale’s exploratory waft into the onion bag last Saturday. Then again, Laurent only made the one career-defining error during the 90 minutes. And he was never captured on film shanking a goal kick out for a corner, either. Hmm, this defence of Liverpool’s custodian isn’t going so well, is it. But...

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• Former chairman criticises alleged victims for hiding identities • Queries why none quit club and says ‘sniff of money is in air’ Ken Bates, the chairman of Chelsea when a number of youth-team footballers claim they were racially abused by their own coaches, has been accused of making “truly shameful” comments after criticising the alleged victims for wanting to keep their identities secret and questioning why they did not report it when they were children. Bates suggested the reason for “all these ancient coming-outs so many years later” was because “the sniff of money is in the air” and said those in question should have found other clubs if the racism they allegedly encountered at Stamford Bridge, from the age of 11 onwards, was so upsetting. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2sjKJip

From when does the World Cup start to who’s likely to win football’s greatest prize – the 2018 tournament explained This World Cup everybody’s talking about. What is it, exactly? The Fifa World Cup is an international football tournament contested by 32 nations every four years. This year’s competition kicks off on 14 June, when hosts Russia play Saudi Arabia in Moscow’s Luzhniki Stadium. After a total of 64 matches played in 12 venues across 11 different Russian cities, the champions will be crowned in the same arena on 14 July. It is, without question, the biggest, most prestigious sporting event on the planet. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2J0TDYG

• Ivory Coast forward is wanted by Tottenham and Chelsea • Palace confident Sako, Cabaye and Ward will remain at club Crystal Palace look set to offer Wilfried Zaha a new contract after his performances helped secure Premier League football for a sixth successive season. The Ivory Coast forward enjoyed his most productive campaign yet as Palace recovered from losing their first seven matches to finish 11th under manager Roy Hodgson. Zaha scored nine goals in 29 appearances, having been sidelined for two separate spells in August and March, with Palace failing to record a single victory in the nine games he missed. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2kyLnV1

Sean Morrison anchors our Championship defence, Bradley Dack shines in League One and Billy Kee scores for fun in League Two Goalkeeper: Sam Johnstone (Aston Villa) This was his 10th loan from Manchester United but game time allowed the 25-year-old to shine , including preposterous saves against Cardiff and Wolves. Only John Ruddy kept more clean sheets than his 22. Right-back: Ryan Fredericks (Fulham) His athleticism was key in transforming defence into attack. Brimming with energy, he has been a three-in-one figurine, adventurous and efficient in both boxes; a modern touchline-hugging full-back. Centre-back: Conor Coady (Wolves) After being used at right-back and defensive midfield, Coady has flourished at sweeper in a back three. Monstrous in defence and capable in attack. Centre-back: Sean Morrison (Cardiff City) Neil Warnock has waxed lyrical about Sol Bamba but alongside the Ivorian his captain has been the bedrock of success. Six goals since February helped them clinc...

Juan Antonio Pizzi has made his side play from the back more and will hope a potent front four can unlock defences in Russia This article is part of the Guardian’s 2018 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 32 countries who have qualified for Russia. theguardian.com is running previews from two countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 14 June. Juan Antonio Pizzi took his place in the Saudi Arabia dugout for the first time in November 2017 yet he is still waiting for his his first competitive game in charge of the Green Falcons - that comes against Russia in the World Cup’s opening match. During his seven-month tenure the Argentinian has packed in as many friendlies as possible to gauge where the side are and what needs to be done before the eyes of the world will be on them on 14 June. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2J1pngn

By BENJAMIN HOFFMAN from NYT Sports https://ift.tt/2IYd9oE

The brilliant full-back picks his all-time side from an impossibly talented group of players having represented Brazil down the years Wow, choosing the Brazil best XI of all time – that’s a tough one. There are so many brilliant players in each position, and that means some great players will miss out. My team is set up in a super offensive formation. We might concede a lot of goals, but we would score so many more. In fact, I can guarantee five goals every game! The best form of defence is to have the ball. A team with Falcão, Zico and Rivellino at its heart could play for years without making a mistake in possession. When you have the ball, you don’t have a problem. That is my philosophy in choosing my all-time Brazil XI. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2soubFq

• Deal makes Wagner one of best-paid managers outside top six • German has been a target for other Premier League clubs David Wagner has signed a new three-year contract with Huddersfield Town, giving the Premier League club a huge boost and ending any possibility of him being lured away this summer. The German, who defied the odds to lead Huddersfield to survival last season, has agreed a deal that ties him to the club until 2021 and is worth more than £2.5m a year, making him one of the best-paid Premier League managers outside of the top six. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2srjWjx

From Zico to Pelé – via Ronaldinho – here is your chance to pick your all-time seleção (thankfully you can play 3-2-5) Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IUD5W5

• 43-year-old leaves Shrewsbury and thanks League One club • Shrews chairman had accused Ipswich of an ‘illegal approach’ Ipswich have confirmed the appointment of Paul Hurst as their new manager in place of the departed Mick McCarthy. Hurst has left Shrewsbury Town, whom he guided to the League One play-off final after achieving their highest league position in 27 years. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IWJVq6

Plus: the greatest goal difference between two teams finishing next to each other in the league table and has a footballer ever done jury service? Mail us here or tweet @TheKnowledge_GU “I’ve recently discovered that, in Nigeria, Dundee United is slang for ‘idiot’ or ‘fool’, apparently the result of a disastrous tour in 1972,” mails Nicholas Reid. “Are there any similar examples of football club names becoming slang terms around the world?” It’s true: Dundee United is slang for idiot in Nigeria. This peculiar fact came to British attention in 2010, during a BBC documentary about the Nigerian capital Lagos. A local man, Chubby, told the filmmakers how life in Lagos is not for the foolish. “Anybody who came to Lagos and he didn’t learn sense, he cannot get sense ever,” said Chubby. “Because here if you are a fool, they will learn you how to get sense. If you are a ‘Dundee United’, when they start to pour shit on you, you will get sense.” Continue reading... from Football | The Gua...

• Agent says Poland striker ‘needs a change’ • Lewandowski has three years left on his contract Robert Lewandowski wants to leave Bayern Munich, according to his agent Pini Zahavi, who told Sport Bild magazine that the Bundesliga’s top scorer “feels that he needs a change and a new challenge in his career”. Related: Roma to demand £79m from Liverpool for goalkeeper Alisson Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IXppK8

Whether its his choice of tattoo or the variation in his spending, the message to the England footballer is clear: know your place In a little over two weeks, the World Cup finals begin in Russia. You would expect the nation’s media to be concentrating its efforts on over-hyping England’s chances and lauding our potential star players. Instead, some parts seem hell-bent on finding reasons to criticise one of the country’s top prospects , Raheem Sterling. After scoring 18 goals from midfield for the runaway winners of this year’s Premier League, you’d expect Sterling to be one of the nation’s darlings. At the tender age of 23, he has already represented his country at two tournaments, and played key roles for two of England’s biggest teams, Liverpool and Manchester City. As a player with speed, genuine flair and an eye for goal, Sterling is a rarity in the England setup. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IUneHb

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• Players can be sent off if incidents are spotted by officials • VAR to be used in World Cup for first time Players at this summer’s World Cup finals could be given red cards for off-the-ball incidents spotted by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), football’s rule-making body the International Football Association Board (Ifab) has confirmed. The controversial VAR system will be used for the first time at a World Cup in Russia, with Fifa having selected 13 dedicated officials for the tournament last month. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2H2lnu2

Ipswich’s goalkeeper fulfilled that vow in March and making the World Cup squad would complete a remarkable turn in fortunes On a warm July night in Montreal almost 11 years ago Bartosz Bialkowski thought he might feel like this forever. He had just made a brilliant reflex save in the last minute of Poland’s Under-20 World Cup match against South Korea, guaranteeing the point that took his country into the knockout stage. It was some way to celebrate his 20th birthday and back in the dressing room he was a hero, hoisted aloft by a team that had already defeated Brazil and felt giddy at the prospect of a crack at Argentina. “We thought we could do whatever we wanted to do,” the Ipswich goalkeeper remembers of a summer that resembled a coming of age. “It was like we were the gods now.” As it turned out, deific status was not that easy to attain. The career Bialkowski had in mind seemed light years away by 2012 when, going nowhere at Southampton and grievously unfit, the prospect of drop...

Egypt should have Mohamed Salah fit for World Cup but either way Héctor Cúper sets the team up very defensively This article is part of the Guardian’s 2018 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 32 countries who have qualified for Russia. theguardian.com is running previews from two countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 14 June. Egypt may have one of the best players in the world in Mohamed Salah but do not let that fool you – this is a team set up very defensively under Héctor Cúper. In his first 32 games as Egypt manager the Argentinian conceded only 18 goals. By mid-May he had yet to lose by more than one goal. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2ky24A1

As a boy El-Hadary had to hide his interest in football from his parents. Now he is set to become the World Cup’s oldest player This article is part of the Guardian’s 2018 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 32 countries who have qualified for Russia. theguardian.com is running previews from two countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 14 June. In the history of the World Cup, no player has appeared in the same team as his own son-in-law. And it won’t happen again this year, though it very nearly did. Last year Shadwa El-Hadary, daughter of Egypt’s goalkeeper and captain Essam, got engaged to the flying winger Mahmoud Abdel-Moneim, commonly known by the single name Kahraba (Electricity). Only 48 days later the relationship was over, after the young player was found to be already engaged to an actress, which must create a uniquely awkward dressing-room dynamic. Continue reading... from Football | T...

• Equality group received 271 reports during 2017-18 • Social media accounted for biggest leap in harassment A huge rise in the number of reports of sexist discrimination in football targeted at high‑profile women in the game is worrying but not surprising, according to the sport’s leading gender equality pressure group. There has been an overall increase of almost 400% in the number of reports of sex discrimination and harassment incidents received by Women in Football, with alleged abuse on social media accounting for the biggest leap. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2kzM5la

The deal with the football club will pay for itself in increased tourism, insist officials Anyone confused as to why Rwanda chose to spend £30m putting its name on the sleeve of Arsenal’s football shirts could begin to answer their question by looking at President Paul Kagame’s Twitter feed. In common with many of his countrymen, Kagame is an avid fan of his “beloved club” and the president – who has been Rwanda’s head of state for almost as long as Arsène Wenger led Arsenal – has regularly offered his view on club matters over the past six years . Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2xrX4q0

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• Striker urges fans to ‘wake up’ after spotting offensive message • Balotelli dedicates goal against Saudi Arabia to Davide Astori Mario Balotelli has urged Italy supporters to “wake up” after his goalscoring return to the national team was soured by an offensive banner in the stands. Balotelli scored in Roberto Mancini’s first game in charge – a 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia on Monday – but after had a message for supporters that appeared to display a racist message aimed at Balotelli. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IVd35h

• Former England midfielder has held talks over vacancy • Derby hope to make formal announcement this week Frank Lampard has resumed talks with Derby County in regards to becoming the club’s new manager, it is understood. The East Midlands club, who lost to Fulham in the Championship play-off semi-finals , hope to be in a position to make an announcement this week. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2sifTGZ

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• Stewart Donald likely to go to arbitration by 11 June • Women’s side likely to have to start season in third tier Sunderland’s new owner, Stewart Donald, has voiced concern for the fate of his club’s women’s team and indicated that Melanie Copeland and her players may no longer be regarded as an unwanted drain on resources. On Monday Sunderland Ladies became the biggest losers in the Football Association’s restructure of the English women’s leagues when they lost top-flight status, were refused a second-tier slot and found themselves left hoping to be accommodated on the third rung of the domestic pyramid. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2shnlSV

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A new generation of dynamic, talented midfielders has prompted Óscar Tabárez to adopt a more creative approach This article is part of the Guardian’s 2018 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 32 countries who have qualified for Russia. theguardian.com is running previews from two countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 14 June. Anyone who has been watching Uruguay over the past 10 years is familiar with Óscar Tabárez’s style: his teams are built from the back to make it as difficult as possible for opponents to score. Then it is all about giving the ball to the team’s world-class forwards, Luis Suárez and Edinson Cavani. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2ITbAfD

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Midfielder was 14 when his dad died in a crash but his response has taken him to Inter and caught Antonio Conte’s eye This article is part of the Guardian’s 2018 World Cup Experts’ Network, a cooperation between some of the best media organisations from the 32 countries who have qualified for Russia. theguardian.com is running previews from two countries each day in the run-up to the tournament kicking off on 14 June. Matías Vecino was 14 when he lost his father, the man who taught him the secrets of football. With the support of his family he has recovered to conquer Italy and grab the attention of Óscar Tabárez. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2J0tZmY

In the second part of our series, the Mexico legend selects his best side of all time with Hugo Sánchez and Javier Hernández up front In goal it has to be Jorge Campos. Like me, he played in three World Cups and also played in over 100 games for the Mexico national team. In my opinion, he was the best goalkeeper that Mexico has ever had. My first centre-back is Rafael Márquez because of what he has done in Europe with Barcelona, where he won four league titles and two European Cups. He has played over 140 games for the national team too – and he could feature in a fifth World Cup! Carlos Salcido was an extremely efficient centre-back and was so effective in over 120 appearances so he earns a place in my team. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2ISbMMm

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Today’s fluff is lodged firmly between the toes Let’s start with the inevitable: following suggestions that Cristiano Ronaldo may be ready to leave Real Madrid , reports of a swap with Paris Saint-Germain for Neymar have surfaced as surely as worms after rain. You can see why such a transaction might suit all parties: PSG could relieve themselves off a burden without losing more face, Real would get a super player who might tone down his demands at a bigger club, and Ronaldo could continue scoring at an absurd rate and make daily trips to the Hall of Mirrors. If PSG could countenance losing Neymar, being forced to pull out of the deal for Kylian Mbappé  would be a painful blow. But that could happen, according to new claims. Earlier this month PSG’s big cheese Nasser al-Khelaifi said the club would not consider selling the extravagantly talented young striker even for £1bn – but the thing is, he is not yet PSG’s to not sell: he spent last season with them on loan fro...

• Brazil midfielder set to replace Emre Can at Anfield • Fabinho had previously been target for Manchester United Liverpool are closing in on the signing of Brazil midfielder Fabinho from Monaco as a replacement for Emre Can as Jürgen Klopp steps up his summer recruitment drive. Negotiations with the Ligue 1 side over a €45m (£40m) fee plus another potential €5m in add-ons have been ongoing for several days but Liverpool are increasingly confident that they have secured the 24-year-old. Manchester United have also been credited with an interest in the player but are expected to sign Fabinho’s international team-mate Fred from Shakhtar Donetsk instead. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2xkJGnt

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Forward reflects on a ‘stressful, negative period’ as she gets set to play abroad after leaving Chelsea while looking forward to some World Cup punditry Eni Aluko is wearing a lime-green Hawaiian print shirt and is surprisingly sprightly after a week of celebrations to mark the end of her time as a Chelsea player. There was a champagne party bus home from the game in Bristol where the club won the title unbeaten, plus festivities that followed her scoring in her final match at Liverpool. Back in London, Aluko cooked paella for 20 friends at her home and David Luiz invited the squad to dine at his new Italian restaurant. “It had been an amazing week with women who have become good friends,” Aluko says. “Finishing this season in such a positive way wrapped up what started so negatively for me personally.” Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2skJMWm

Russia-born Chelsea FC owner to move to Tel Aviv after problems renewing UK visa, Israeli media reports Roman Abramovich, the billionaire owner of Chelsea football club, has been granted Israeli citizenship and will move to Tel Aviv, according to local media reports. Abramovich’s British visa had expired and sources told the Reuters news agency it was taking longer than usual to get it renewed. The British government has declined to comment on his case. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IQmLpj

The Socceroos and their fans will not be the only ones flying the Australian flag at the tournament • Who are you supporting – and how will your team fare ? The World Cup in Russia will be a tournament of firsts. It will be the first held in eastern Europe and the Eurasian landmass. It will be the first for Panama and Iceland. It will be the first to feature video assistant referee technology. And, for the first time in the 88-year history of Fifa’s flagship event, two of the most senior officials – host city general coordinators – will be female. Related: Jamie Maclaren brought into Socceroos World Cup squad Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2sgJyiU

Coventry City sealed an immediate return to League One after a convincing League Two play-off final victory over Exeter City. For the 35,000 baying Coventry supporters who made Wembley appear lopsided, the victory not only reversed an alarming slide down the divisions but brought a first promotion for 51 years in arguably their biggest game since the 1987 FA Cup final. The roar at full-time was nothing short of deafening. Fine goals by Jordan Willis, Jordan Shipley and Jack Grimmer, were enough for Coventry’s unpopular owner, Joy Seppala, the chief executive of the hedge fund Sisu, to nudge her sunglasses on to her forehead so she could witness the sea of sky blue – enhanced by smoke bombs – below. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2slHkyK

At least one of these 10 teams will find themselves watching the last weekend of the season from home.

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Jason Seaman, a former college football player, says stopping Indiana school shooting 'only acceptable actions'

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Craven Cottage in need of more variations as club prepare for top-flight football after four years in the Championship Slavisa Jokanovic opted for some sporting cross‑pollination when asked whether, after two and a half years of battles won and lost, Fulham’s promotion from the Championship felt especially sweet. “Like in tennis, we lost one match point,” he said. “But today we smashed the second match point. We are a Premier League team.” They are, and Jokanovic could feel welcome to all the emphatic language he liked. A double-fault would have been crushing for Fulham, whose charge towards automatic promotion blew up against Birmingham on a hard, well‑grown pitch that perplexed their players and seemed to have laid bare a soft underbelly. Instead their manager can reflect on deserved victory over forces that had at one stage cast his tenure into doubt and could sense that, having so successfully got his own way once, he has enough credit built up to get it again. Continu...

• Manchester United closely monitored Bale last summer • Striker’s injury record not a concern for Mourinho Manchester City have cleared the way for Manchester United to revive their interest in Gareth Bale as the Premier League champions are not interested in signing the Welshman. Bale could depart Real Madrid this summer after he signalled his unhappiness at being dropped by Zinedine Zidane, the head coach, for the 3-1 Champions League final victory against Liverpool in Kiev. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2GUTOD1

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When Johan Cruyff sold Jan Olsson the mother of all dummies with the subtlest of swerves, the Dutch captain’s signature move became the enduring symbol of Total Football It’s the defining image of the 1974 World Cup; the defining image of the great Dutch team of the 70s; the defining image of one of the most talented, enchanting and magical players to ever breeze around a football field. It’s the 23rd minute of the Group 3 game between Holland and Sweden at the Westfalenstadion in Dortmund, and Wim van Hanegem has the ball at his feet on the right wing. He’s about to be crowded out by Bjorn Andersson and Ralf Edstrom, so clips a pass back along the flank to Wim Rijsbergen, who in turn flicks the ball inside to Arie Haan, airily ambling through the centre circle. Haan takes a couple of quick, adroit touches to tee himself up, then wafts his right leg, spraying a long diagonal pass towards the left-hand corner flag, towards … Johan Cruyff. Continue reading... from Football | The Gua...

The Champions League triumph against Liverpool showed that Real Madrid’s most obvious quality is simply that they win. Inexplicably at times, but remorselessly “We are Real Madrid,” Marcelo said boldly after Real Madrid had – just – held off Juventus’s fightback in the quarter-final. The reference was clear: they were not Barcelona, not the sort of team to go giving away three-goals leads as their great rivals had the previous night, not the sort of side who countenanced failure. Whether that is arrogance or a necessary mindset for winning probably depends on perspective, but what is true of that Madrid is that their most obvious quality is simply that they win. Inexplicably at times, but remorselessly. Madrid are only the fourth side in history to have been European champions three times in a row . Only they themselves, between 1956 and 1960, have had a run of sustained success better than the four Champions Leagues they have won in the past five years. That suggests they are one of ...

The Liverpool manager, Jürgen Klopp, said his team “wanted everything and got minus nothing” in Kiev after they were beaten 3-1 by Real Madrid in the Champions League final. Their star striker Mohamed Salah suffered a serious injury and the side were also blighted by two dreadful goalkeeping errors from Loris Karius. Both players were left in tears while Real Madrid celebrated a third consecutive year of as kings of Europe. Real Madrid win Champions League as brilliant Bale sinks Liverpool Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2xnoNb4

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We bring you the best images from Kiev after Real Madrid’s win over Liverpool gave the Spanish club their 13th European Cup win. The victory also meant they became the first side to win three consecutive titles in the Champions League era Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2sh1mL4

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Exeter’s director of football grew up in the stadium’s shadow and retires after the League Two play-off final against Coventry “A40, Hanger Lane, turn left on to the North Circular, past Stonebridge Park and over on my left was Wembley,” says Steve Perryman , recounting his journey from Northolt to training at Tottenham Hotspur as a teenager, a drive he could do with his eyes closed these days. “I would go past it twice a day, there and back, usually sat in traffic, and you conjure up images and think: ‘I hope I play here again.’ And now we are back there with Exeter.” The League Two play-off final against Coventry City on Monday will be particularly pertinent given it is Perryman’s final match before retiring – after 51 years in the game. He grew up in the shadow of Wembley, going to the dogs on a Friday night with his older brothers and playing on Ealing Common. “It is extraordinary and, if I could have written it, I guess this is how it would have finished,” he says. Continue rea...

There was a moment of confusion over the laws of football in the League of Ireland First Division over the weekend.  Galway United goalkeeper Tadhg Ryan broke the rules after he placed the ball on the ground only to pick it up again. Cabinteely's Luke Clucas then quickly took the ball from his grasp and crossed for team-mate Keith Dalton to score. Promotion-chasing Galway still walked away with the win, beating Cabinteely 2-1. Fifa states it is an offence if the keeper 'handles the ball again after it has been released from his possession and has not touched any other player' Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IRZimW

Fulham have been promoted to the Premier League thanks to a 1-0 victory against Aston Villa in the Championship play-off final at Wembley. Tom Cairney scored the goal that returned them to the top flight four seasons after relegation, after 23 minutes, but they had to hold on for 20 minutes with 10 men after Denis Odoi picked up a second yellow card in a match marred by a number of ugly tackles. Fulham’s Ryan Fredericks was lucky not to be sent off for stamping on Jack Grealish, who had his own escape later, before being the player fouled when Odoi was sent off. Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2ITkQMY

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As Real Madrid and Liverpool meet in the 2018 Champions League final, we’ve had a rummage in the archives to check out what happened the last time they met in the final Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2IOWQdw

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The defender has numerous tattoos, wears outrageous outfits and has known only success as Real’s Champions League captain Sergio Ramos was born with golden balls. That’s what Sergio Ramos says, anyway – and, he adds, they’re right where they’re supposed to be. It’s no Ossie’s Dream and it’s not the Anfield Rap either, but this week Real Madrid’s captain released a cup final song of his own: a European Cup final song, offered up with the words “my house, some friends, a lot of magic and this is the result: my life in a song and lots of verses still to write”. With the usual rapper’s brag and bravado, SR4 tells his journey from the streets – well, the square in Camas, Seville – to the World Cup and close to another Champions League title. Already “a legend,” as the track has it, it would be his fourth. Nothing was handed over free, runs one line of the rap; “his ‘testiculine’ is not for sale, it comes out as a Panenka” – that moment when, in the semi-final of the 2012 European Champion...

‘The Manchester City of the Championship’ take on Aston Villa in the play-off final with much to thank their Serbian manager for When Neil Warnock described Fulham as “the Manchester City of the Championship” he was not talking about the transfer fees. Fulham had a net spend of around £3m this season and their most expensive signing, the forward Rui Fonte, has been a conspicuous failure. No, the Cardiff manager was talking about the passing. Top in the division for completion (83.1%) and total passes (24,857), Fulham were also the side with the most accurate short passes, second most shots on target and the highest average possession. Related: John Terry could miss Chelsea games under new Aston Villa deal Continue reading... from Football | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2kqiXN1

These games had almost no playoff or conference title implications, but that didn't make them any less awesome.

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