Barcelona have started the LaLiga season with two consecutive wins despite missing several key players, raising expectations around the prospects of new head coach, Hansi Flick.
Topping the table along with Celta Vigo on six points, Barcelona travel to Rayo Vallecano, who are unbeaten after shocking Real Sociedad 2-1 and holding Getafe to a hard-fought goalless draw on Saturday.
The goal in Barcelona should always be to win the league, Flick told a press conference on Monday.
Sure, it s a long road, but we have started well, although everything can change quickly.
Now we are happy about our start and we are confident. We are not looking ahead to May, our focus is to keep momentum in the next game.
We are very satisfied with what the team is do…
Australia opener David Warner has taken a cheeky dig at England ahead of the Women’s World Cup semi-final.
The Lionesses face Australia in Sydney in the last four on Wednesday morning.
The Australia cricket team were unhappy when the ball was changed mid-innings during England’s victory in the fifth Ashes Test last month.
An early good luck to the Just keep an eye out in case the Poms ask to change the ball
— David Warner (@davidwarner31)
It is something Warner clearly has not forgotten as he wished Australia good luck ahead of the semi-final clash.
He wrote on Twitter: “An early good luck to the The Matildas. Just keep an eye out in case the Poms ask to change the ball.”
Fellow batter Usman Khawaja also chipped in, tw…
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The standout fixture of game week 30 in the 2023/24 La Liga season is set to unfold at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday evening, as Real Madrid play host to Athletic Bilbao in what promises to be an enthralling encounter.
Real Madrid currently lead the league table, holding an eight-point advantage over second-placed Barcelona. Meanwhile, Bilbao occupy the fourth position, holding a one-point lead over fifth-placed Atletico Madrid in the race for Champions League qualification.
Real Madrid
Real Madrid has been the dominant force in the Spanish top flight this season, with an impressive record of 22 wins, six draws, and one defeat from their 29 matches, accumulating 72 points and leading the table quite comfortably.
With…
With Saturday s Euro 2024 group-stage draw done and dusted, Europe s elite know what awaits them in Germany next year and all eyes will turn to the opening game in Munich on June 14.
Steve Clarke s Scotland will be Germany s first opponents as they kickstart their bid to become the first sole host nation to win the tournament since France in 1984.
Elsewhere, England can be content with a somewhat kind draw as Jude Bellingham, Harry Kane and company look to bring football home, while Group B looks set to earn the title of group of death , with defending champions Italy pitted against Spain and Croatia.
As fans across the continent begin plotting their nations routes to the final, to be held in Berlin on July 14, Stats Perform runs through the best facts and figure…
After 36 intense games, Euro 2016 celebrated the second of two rest days on Friday ahead of the upcoming round-of-16 clashes.
But despite the lack of games, there was still plenty of action to be seen in France. As ever, we present the pick of the more seldom-seen moments, featuring a rap about a not so free-scoring Belgian attacker.
CALL ME BENTEKE, BENTEKE
It s fair to say Euro 2016 has not been Belgium striker Christian Benteke s tournament just yet.
The Liverpool man remained on the bench for the full 90 minutes against Italy, while he featured for a combined total of 11 minutes during two substitute cameos against the Republic of Ireland and Sweden.
That s not stopped Benteke from inspiring other people, though.
Young Belg…
With only two home games left of the regular season, Eric Ramsay urged Minnesota United to come away with maximum points, starting against Colorado Rapids.
The Loons currently sit ninth in the Western Conference, but due to the tight nature of the table, they could spring up it with a win.
They have won their last three road games on the bounce, but have won just one of their last seven on home soil.
Following their 2-0 victory over Sporting Kansas City, Ramsay challenged his team to bring their away form to Allianz Field.
We ve got to win at home between now and the end of the year, he said. That s the difference maker.
We ve done our bit against teams below us in the table away from home. We just need to do the easier bit, which is put in a pe…
As the 2016/2017 Premier League champions Chelsea finished the 2017/2018 league campaign outside of the top 4 positions, they will have an extra motive to defeat Manchester United in the second successive FA Cup final, having lost to Arsenal in the previous edition of the competition.
The Red Devils, on the other hand, have enjoyed a promising season, finishing as Premiership runners up, and they arrive at Wembley hoping to lift their 13th FA Cup title, winning the last of those two years ago.
Team News
David Luiz and Ethan Ampadu miss out through injury for Chelsea, but under-pressure manager Antonio Conte has no other selection worries.
Jose Mourinho, on the other hand, has received a major boost as Romelu Lukaku recovered from an ankle problem, althoug…
French political leader Jordan Bardella criticised Kylian Mbappe for speaking out against the extremes in parliamentary elections before their game against Austria at Euro 2024.
Striker Marcus Thuram made his position clear on the party, having urged people to fight daily to prevent Bardella s National Rally (RN) from gaining power in France, with a general election set to take place in July.
Mbappe then later used his pre-match press conference to say he supported the same values as Thuram, though he did not call out the RN by name.
Kylian Mbappe is against extreme views and against ideas that divide people. I want to be proud to represent France, I don t want to represent a country that doesn t correspond to my values or our values, Mbappe said.
He als…
FIFA general secretary Jerome Valcke has admitted Brazil s preparations for the 2014 World Cup are behind schedule.
Hosting football s showpiece event for the second time, the South American nation have fallen behind with the transport system, as well as stadiums, still far from ready.
Valcke said the host nation was playing catch-up for the tournament, which is due to begin on June 13, 2014.
There is a lot of work to deliver. We don t have stadiums, we don t have airports, we don t have a national transportation system in place and we are one month away from the preliminary draw, he told the Inside World Football Forum in Moscow on Friday.
The Maracana is definitely not currently a World Cup stadium and that s why it s closed. It will be ready at the …
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has proclaimed Russia 2018 to be the best World Cup ever .
The finals have largely been considered a major success by visitors and viewers across the world, particularly in light of concerns about Russia s suitability as hosts.
Organisers have been praised for an efficient running of the tournament across the 11 host cities, while there have been few recorded incidents of travelling fans being subjected to the sort of racial or homophobic harassment that was initially feared.
With the football itself largely engaging throughout the tournament, Infantino had no hesitation in describing 2018 as the World Cup s finest year.
A couple of years ago, I said this would be the World Cup ever. Today, I can say that with new convicti…