Market: Guimaraes win

Odds: 4/5 @

Hoping to find a route into the European spots this weekend, Guimaraes will travel to the Estadio Municipal when they meet Chaves on Sunday afternoon.

Starting with the hosts, while Chaves might have sprung a Primera Liga upset last season as they secured a top-half finish, Moreno’s men have come crashing back down to earth this time around. Opening March with a nightmare performance at home against Arouca as they suffered a 5-1 drumming, the ex-Guimaraes boss faces another stern examination when his former employers arrive at the Estadio Municipal this weekend. In fact, aside from a 2-1 victory against Boavista last month, Sunday’s hosts have failed to muster a single win from any of their previous 12 straight Primera Liga …

Steve Clarke admits Scotland’s 2024 Euro qualifier against Georgia should have been stopped before Callum McGregor scored the opening goal in the rain-interrupted 2-0 win at Hampden Park.

A heavy rainstorm in the lead-up to the Group A fixture had rendered the match farcical in the opening stages and Clarke and opposition boss Willy Sagnol had flagged up concerns before midfielder McGregor scored in the sixth minute with a drive.

Hungarian referee Istvan Vad immediately halted the game with an announcement confirming an initial 20-minute delay for the pitch to be cleared of water before a pitch inspection.

When play eventually resumed it was over 90 minutes after it had been halted.

The crowd were absolutely magnificent.

Steve Clarke spoke pos…

Veteran Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar is determined to finish his career on a high with a win in the Champions League final.

The 40-year old Dutchman already has two Champions League wins to his name, with Ajax and United.

But a third winners medal would be the best possible way to round-off his 21-year professional career, which will come to an end against Barcelona at Wembley on Saturday.

If it s a winning game then it will be the perfect one, van der Saar

To be fair I m not really thinking about that. It s an accumulation of things over the season. It starts in July with pre-season.

You hope to do well in the league, in the Champions League and the FA Cup and certain things fall off during the season and luckily we won th…

Germany manager Joachim Loew has confirmed Michael Ballack s international career is over, with a potential farewell appearance in August.

The 34-year-old Bayer Leverkusen midfielder a former captain of his country was informed he did not feature in Loew s plans after talks between the two in March.

Loew has overseen the emergence of a new generation of young stars for Germany a direction galvanised by the nation s third-placed finish at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Ballack missed the tournament in South Africa after breaking a bone in his foot in the 2010 FA Cup final while with English Premier League outfit Chelsea, and the veteran has been unable to force his way back into the Loew s thinking since.

The past months have shown that many young players are …

The Asian Football Confederation have praised Japanese referee Yuichi Nishimura for a strong performance in Brazil s win over Croatia.

Nishimura was the villain for Croatia in Sao Paulo on Thursday with the 42-year-old awarding a penalty for minimal contact on Brazil striker Fred in the second half, which allowed the hosts to claim a 2-1 lead in the opening match of the FIFA World Cup.

That decision and Nishimura s general performance was widely criticised but the AFC backed their man after the final for making big calls at the Arena Corinthians.

(Nishimura) gave a strong performance in some high-pressure, split-second situations, with his awarding of a penalty to Brazil and adjudging Ivica Olic for a foul on goalkeeper Julio Cesar (a minute earlier), an article on the…

Spain striker Fernando Torres said he and his team-mates must put their loss to the Netherlands behind them.

The FIFA World Cup holders are in grave danger of bowing out at the group stages in Brazil, after a 5-1 shellacking from the Dutch in their 2010 final rematch on Friday.

Vicente del Bosque s men face Chile in a virtual must-win clash in Rio de Janeiro, and Chelsea striker Torres said they must banish the memory of their Dutch disaster if they are to bounce back in Group B.

It is not easy to defend a World Cup title, we have to forget the first match and think that in a similar situation we have done our best and we have gone on, Torres said.

We need to remain in a positive way, feeling the support of the people from Spain and the pressure is the same for a…

New Bayern Munich signing James Rodriguez says he is dreaming big and fully motivated as he prepares to start his career in Germany.

James has agreed to join Bayern on a two-year loan deal from Real Madrid, with the Bundesliga club holding an option to buy him permanently.

The attacking midfielder is set to formally sign for the German champions on Wednesday, which is also his 26th birthday, after finishing the last of his medical checks.

In his first interview after his move to Bayern was announced, James revealed he is setting his sights high.

I m very happy and looking forward to being at a huge club and in a great team, the Colombia international said to Bayerntv.

Everyone knows what FC Bayern stands for and what the club is about.

…

New Bayern Munich signing James Rodriguez has outlined ambitious plans to take over from Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo as one of the world s foremost footballers.

The Colombia international joined the Bundesliga champions this month on an initial two-year loan deal, with the option to make the move permanent in 2019.

James joined Real Madrid for a reported €70million from Monaco after lighting up World Cup 2014, but he struggled to convince Carlo Ancelotti, Rafael Benitez and Zinedine Zidane that he was worthy of a regular place in the starting line-up.

However, having rejoined Ancelotti at the Allianz Arena, the 26-year-old is now determined to establish himself as one of the game s greats and even take over from Messi and Ronaldo, who have dominated Euro…

According to a report from Tuttosport, Juventus have made Matthijs de Ligt their number one priority from a defensive standpoint in the summer transfer window. The Italian champions were also believed to be interested in Frenkie de Jong, prior to the Dutchman’s move to Barcelona being confirmed.

De Ligt has been able to establish himself as one of the best young defenders in Europe over the last few years, and at the age of 19, he still has a bright future ahead of him.

Ruben Dias of Benfica and Nikola Milenkovic of Fiorentina are believed to be the back up options if they can’t sure de Ligt, who was able to force his way into the Netherlands senior team back in 2017.

Juve have made no secret of the fact that they’re trying to build some kind of super team…

Alphonso Davies has penned a two-year extension to his Bayern Munich contract, which now runs until 2025.

The 19-year-old was signed by the Bundesliga champions in July 2018 and started training with the club in November of that year after completing the MLS season with Vancouver Whitecaps.

Davies made six first-team appearances off the bench last term and has made a further 29 in all competitions this season after converting to left-back, with David Alaba having featured predominantly in the centre of defence to help Bayern s injury woes at the back.

The Canada international s previous deal was due to expire in 2023 but Bayern confirmed he has put pen to paper on fresh terms.

I am very happy. FC Bayern is one of the best clubs in the world and it was a…