Former Brazil striker Ronaldo is backing Spain to beat Italy in Saturday s crucial World Cup qualifying match and described captain Sergio Ramos as the best defender in the world right now .
The 2010 World Cup winners are top of Group G on goal difference, having conceded one goal fewer and scored three more than second-placed Italy.
A late Daniele De Rossi equaliser denied Spain victory in the corresponding fixture in October 2016, when Vitolo netted first in a 1-1 draw, but a win over the Azzurri at Santiago Bernabeu would make Julen Lopetegui s side firm favourites to top the group and leave Italy hoping to qualify via the play-offs.
Spain are the favourites, but not by much, Ronaldo told La Gazzetta dello Sport.
The only advantage is they are playin…
Julen Lopetegui feels coaches should be given more international breaks to develop their teams ahead of the World Cup, as Spain prepare for friendlies against Costa Rica and Russia.
The 2010 winners eased to qualification for Russia 2018 by topping a group that included Italy after winning nine of their last 10 matches, but Lopetegui is frustrated by the international calendar.
Spain will not get together again until March, when a prestigious friendly against world champions Germany has been scheduled to be played in Dusseldorf.
FIFA is considering a change in the schedule to have longer, less frequent breaks, but Lopetegui indicated he would prefer a switch that gives him more opportunities to work with his players.
We re focused on our football right n…
Undimmed by the passage of time and present-day struggles at Old Trafford, Manchester United s 1999 treble remains the greatest single-season achievement in English club football history.
While Manchester City s current domestic dominance is one of towering points totals and smashed records, Alex Ferguson s finest hour was one built upon a death-or-glory knife edge.
From Birmingham to Barcelona via Turin, a United side packed with household names secured their legacy in unforgettable style.
To mark the 20th anniversary of a remarkable triumph, we look back at some of the signature wins in a campaign that came to define Ferguson s Old Trafford dynasty.
Oh what a night! won the Champions League to complete the Treble on this day in 1999.
— Manch…
Mauricio Pochettino confirmed Tottenham are working so hard to extend Christian Eriksen s contract beyond 2020.
Eriksen has been a key player at Spurs ever since he joined from Ajax in 2013 and the club are eager to tie him down to a new long-term deal.
Media reports suggest the two parties have been in talks for several months, but rumours of tentative interest from the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid and Barcelona have often lingered in the background.
Speculation in August claimed Spurs and Eriksen s representatives had come to a stalemate in negotiations, but Pochettino seems optimistic about the situation and is adamant the club is putting a lot of effort into discussions.
He [Eriksen] knows, and we know what we are doing, Pochettino told …
I remember watching a young David Silva playing for Valencia and thinking ‘this lad is going to achieve great things’. It is fair to say the little Spanish maestro has done just that at both club and international level.
Silva now a relative veteran at 31, has won nearly everything there is to win in club football since moving to Manchester City in 2010. He has won two Premier League titles, two League Cups and an FA Cup.
On the international scene, Silva has won the World Cup once and the European Championships twice with Spain. Quite simply Silva has enjoyed a trophy-laden career.
This season could bring yet more success and silverware for the Spaniard under Pep Guardiola. The Citizens are eight points clear at the top of the Premier League table after Sun…
Eden Hazard has credited Maurizio Sarri with prompting his most prolific season in Chelsea colours.
Hazard s brace against West Ham on Monday – including a stunning solo effort in the first half – were his 15th and 16th goals in the Premier League this term, matching the tally he recorded on the way to his second title with Chelsea in 2016-17.
With five games remaining to improve upon that number, starting with Sunday s keenly anticipated trip to face leaders Liverpool, the Belgium playmaker has lavished praise upon head coach Sarri.
Statistically it s my best season, and I like to say that because the way he s [Sarri] thinking is the same way I think about football, Hazard told BBC Football Focus, despite a debut season in the England s top flight that has …
Luis Suarez has won the Pichichi prize for La Liga s top goalscorer in 2015-16.
The Uruguay international has finished the season on 40 goals, five ahead of Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo, who claimed the prize last season.
Suarez is the first player to beat either Lionel Messi or Ronaldo to the award since compatriot Diego Forlan in the 2008-09 campaign.
He is also the third player to score 40 goals in a Liga season, with Messi and Ronaldo each achieving the feat three times.
The Barcelona forward went into the final round of La Liga on Sunday with a four-goal advantage over second-placed Ronaldo in the standings, and both scored twice in the first half of their respective matches against Granada and Deportivo La Coruna.
But with Ronaldo bei…
Market: Las Palmas double chance
Odds: 4/5 @
Looking to make another La Liga statement on Saturday evening, a high-flying Las Palmas will travel to the El Sadar when they meet Osasuna.
Starting with the hosts, while Osasuna might have opened up the 2023/24 campaign with their sights set on snatching what would be a famous European finish, Los Rojillos find themselves in the midst of a public struggle. Last seen putting in another nightmare performance as they eventually fell to an action-packed 4-2 loss at home against Girona, Jagoba Arrasate’s side have come tumbling out the top-half of the La Liga standings. Losing three of their last four appearances, fans around El Sadar will be hugely concerned by their side’s rather glaring defensive issues. Including …
Competition: FA Cup
Market: Swansea to beat Wolverhampton
Odds:
The FA Cup returns this week for yet more action as the Third Round replays take place. There are still a number of Premier League teams yet to book their place in the next round and they will be looking to avoid embarrassment against their lower-league opposition. With this in mind, Swansea host Wolves on Wednesday.
Swansea have been in very poor form in the league this season and they are in real trouble of getting relegated. After 23 games they have picked up 17 points via four wins, five draws and 14 defeats. They have scored a league-low 14 goals, while they have conceded 35 times. In their last five there has been some cause for optimism, as they have drawn twice, lost twice …
Atletico Madrid centre-back Diego Godin is a transfer target for Serie A hotshots Lazio, Italian news outlet La Repubblica reports.
Uruguay international defender has been with Los Colchineros since 2010 during which time he established himself as one of the key players for Diego Simeone’s side.
Godin’s contract with the Spanish club expires in 2019 and Atletico Madrid are likely to sell him during the summer transfer window in order to avoid risk of losing his on a free transfer next summer.
In the meantime, Lazio are actively looking for a replacement for wantaway Stefan de Vrij who is widely expected to change clubs at the end of the season.
Diego Godin played an important role in Atletico Madrid’s 1-1 stalemate against Arsenal in London on Thur…