Striker Roberto Soldado has extended his contract with Spanish club Valencia.
The Spain international has inked a new deal with the La Liga side until the summer of 2017.
Soldado joined Valencia from Getafe in 2010 and has since developed into a key player at Los Che.
The 27-year-old was the club s leading goal-scorer in the past two seasons, and club president Manuel Llorente was over the moon with the striker s contract renewal.
Roberto Soldado s performances have been fantastic that is something that everyone has seen, he said.
However, his dedication, desire to take Valencia forward and his winning character make him a cornerstone of the team and an emblem for Valencianistas.
Soldado was a surprise omission from Spain s Euro 2012 …
Frank Lampard will remain patient with Kai Havertz and insists any critics must give the Chelsea forward time to adapt to the Premier League.
Up against a resilient Everton on Saturday, Lampard s side slipped to their first defeat since a penalty shoot-out loss to Tottenham in the EFL Cup on September 29.
It ended an unbeaten run of 14 games in all competitions, with the Blues missing the chance to go top of the table.
Havertz, who started on the right of a front three which also included Timo Werner and Olivier Giroud, put in a particularly frustrating showing.
The Germany international, signed from Bayer Leverkusen this year, was kept under wraps by Ben Godfrey, who played out of position at left-back in an Everton defence comprising four centre-backs.<…
Marouane Fellaini has revealed he is still in contact with special Tottenham head coach Jose Mourinho but ruled out a January reunion.
The 32-year-old played under Mourinho at Manchester United and has been touted as a target for Spurs ahead of next month s transfer window.
But while having a lasting relationship with his former boss, who was appointed by Tottenham in November, Fellaini is happy in the Chinese Super League with Shandong Luneng.
Jose is special for me. We text each other, we call each other from time to time, he told Eleven Sports.
Not a bad start
— Marouane Fellaini (@Fellaini)
He s taken over at Spurs and he s doing well. I wish him all the best. But I am good where I am now.
Fellaini moved to China in F…
Despite being regarded as the heir to Lionel Messi s throne, legendary footballer Pele believes Neymar does not have the quality of his Barcelona team-mate or Cristiano Ronaldo.
Neymar forms a key part of Barcelona s formidable front three labelled MSN alongside five-time Ballon d Or winner Messi and Luis Suarez, while he is the face of Brazil s new generation as captain.
The 24-year-old, who scored 31 goals in all competitions last season, finished third behind Messi and Ronaldo in Ballon d Or voting after helping Barca to the treble in 2014-15.
But countryman Pele arguably the greatest player of all time insisted Neymar is not in the same bracket as Messi and Ronaldo.
I ve known Neymar since he was little and many years ago his coaches told me he was v…
Atletico Madrid midfielder Joshua Guilavogui has made it clear that he plans to remain with Wolfsburg beyond the current campaign.
The 24-year-old joined the Wolves on loan in the summer having failed to prove his worth at Vicente Calderon and he has since got his career back on track.
Guilavogui started a total of 16 Bundesliga matches this season, while making another three substitute appearances, and he hopes he has done enough to earn a long-term deal at Volkswagen Arena.
The Frenchman has no plans to return to Atletico Madrid and is eager to sign a permanent deal with Wolfsburg at the earliest opportunity.
“Coach Diego Simeone spoke with me two times in five months. With Dieter Hecking, we are talking constantly,” Guilavogui told Kicker.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic believes Antonio Conte is being made to pay by Tottenham for being himself .
Conte is widely expected to be sacked in the coming days following his outburst after Spurs let a two-goal lead slip in last weekend s 3-3 Premier League draw at Southampton.
The Italian accused his players of being selfish and playing with no heart , with that draw following swiftly on from Tottenham s FA Cup and Champions League exits.
But Ibrahimovic, who has never previously played under Conte, has defended the multi-title-winning coach for speaking his mind in public.
Every single person works in his own way. Somebody tries to be an actor, pretend. Somebody is being himself, somebody is trying to be perfect, he told Sky Sports.
I believe in being…
Brazilian forward Marta, who won her third FIFA Women s World Player of the Year award for her 2008 heroics, will join the Los Angeles Sol of Women s Professional Soccer for the upcoming season.
Marta, who turns 23 next month, led the Brazilians to the 2007 Women s World Cup final in China, where they lost to Germany, and silver-medal finishes at the 2004 and 2008 Olympics. She most recently played for Umea IK of Sweden.
Of course I am sad I am leaving, but I am happy because a new project is beginning. It is time to start something new, Marta said.
Trying to light a football spark in America similar to what England s David Beckham attempted with the Los Angeles Galaxy, Marta will try to revive US pro women s soccer six years after the Women s United Soccer Ass…
Market: Tottenham to beat Chelsea
Odds:
With players and coaches returning to the Premier League this weekend following the international break, Chelsea will know anything less than a win over Tottenham on Sunday will leave qualification for next season s Champions League a very tall order.
For Antonio Conte s Chelsea side, after relinquishing any chance of defending their Premier League crown months ago, it appears that the Italians position at Stamford Bridge is growing more untenable by the week. Suffering a 3-0 defeat away to Barcelona, the Blues came crashing out of the Champions League and securing a top-four finish in England s top-tier is starting to look increasingly unlikely. With the defending champions now sat fifth in the table, Conte s misfir…
Arsenal have postponed a Thursday news conference amid reports Mikel Arteta is set to be appointed as the club s new boss.
The Gunners were due to hold a media briefing to preview Saturday s Premier League clash at Everton, who themselves are reportedly close to having a new man in the dugout in the form of Carlo Ancelotti.
However, Arsenal confirmed the conference would be put back a day to Friday with a time to be announced later on Thursday.
It comes at a time where Arsenal look certain to install former midfielder Arteta as the successor to Unai Emery, who was sacked as head coach last month.
North London. And proud of it.
Our players visited a range of programmes in the local area this afternoon
Thanks for having us,
— Ars…
In the hunt to replace sacked Bayern Munich coach Jurgen Klinsmann, club chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge insisted Sunday experience and personality would be key attributes for potential candidates.
When one looks at the current trend in Europe, it s notable that many of the successful coaches are personalities with a huge amount of experience and of advancing age, Rummenigge told Sunday s edition of Die Welt.
Klinsmann was sacked last Monday as Bayern head coach after just ten months in charge following a string of poor results with Jupp Heynckes appointed as caretaker coach for the rest of the season.
Dutch coaches Louis van Gaal, Frank Rijkaard and Martin Jol have all been linked to the vacant job at the defending Bundesliga champions, as well as German Footba…