Zinedine Zidane has reaffirmed his desire to remain in charge at Real Madrid, regardless of whether they are successful in this season s Champions League.
Appointed in January 2016 following the departure of Rafael Benitez, the Frenchman has won back-to-back titles in Europe and also led the club to LaLiga glory last season.
He once again has Madrid on course for Champions League glory this term they hold a 2-1 aggregate lead over Bayern Munich heading into the second leg of their semi-final at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday.
Los Blancos have struggled domestically this term, a lack of consistency ruining their title defence and leading to questions over the coach s future.
Zidane, though, is determined to stick around in the Spanish capital.
I…
Thiago Silva wants Neymar to stay at Paris Saint-Germain, but he is eager for his Brazil team-mate to be happy.
Neymar, 27, has been linked with a return to Barcelona, two years after leaving the LaLiga champions for PSG in a world-record €222million move.
The forward, who is missing the Copa America due to an ankle injury, is set to leave PSG, while Dani Alves has confirmed he is also departing.
Silva, whose team face Argentina in the Copa America semi-finals on Tuesday, said he hoped Neymar would stay at the Parc des Princes.
The moment is not conducive to that. We re in another competition, the PSG captain told a news conference.
Of course the will is huge for Ney to remain, but for him to be happy.
Dani made a statement, he s out,…
Memphis Depay has admitted he should have been better in his first season at Manchester United, but now feels Jose Mourinho believes in him as he looks to live up to the high expectations at Old Trafford at last.
Having been hotly tipped to light up the Premier League after leaving PSV in 2015, the Netherlands international struggled to make an impact under former manager Louis van Gaal.
Now, though, despite enjoying limited game time again since Mourinho took charge, Depay believes he is ready to prove his worth at United.
Things are going well on the training pitch, he told Metro. I am fresh and fit. Mourinho is a great coach. He has told me he believes in me, both in person, but also publicly.
I would rather not talk about last season. That is someth…
Serie A outfit Roma have completed the signing of Federico Fazio from Tottenham on an initial loan deal.
Fazio, 29, joins Roma on a season-long loan or a fixed fee of €1.2 million, the club announced on Wednesday.
However, the agreement includes the option to buy the Argentine defender, depending on the completion of certain sporting targets, for a fee of €3.2m.
I am very happy to join a great team like Roma, Fazio said.
I really want to start training and get to know my new team-mates and coach.
Federico has picked shirt No.20
Remember any players who have worn it before
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN)
Fazio, a three-time Argentina international, spent the second half of last season on loan at Sevilla…
Lazio captain Stefano Mauri has been banned for six months after being implicated in the Scommessopoli match-fixing scandal.
Mauri, who has previously protested his innocence, was one of eight players said to have been complicit in the fixing of Lazio s matches with Genoa and Lecce in May 2011.
The Italy international has been punished for failing to report match-fixing.
Mauri was found guilty for his role in the Lecce match, but the Italian Football Federation rejected prosecutor Stefano Palazzi s request for the 33-year-old to be suspended for four years and six months.
Palazzi had also asked for Lazio to be docked six points for the new season, however, the Rome club have instead been handed a €40,000 fine.
Lecce were slapped with a €20,000 fine, whi…
Market: Austria win
Odds:
Desperate to improve on their recent form before hosting this summers World Cup finals, Russia will travel to Austria on Wednesday.
For Franco Foda s Austria side, although The Reds were unable to book their spot in Russia this summer and improve on their abysmal tournament at Euro 2016, the hosts have begun to rebuild with a string of victories of late. Coming off the back of a 4-0 win away in Luxemburg, although Austria were only able to secure a fourth-place finish in Group D, Foda s side are now on a five-match winning run and one man to watch for Austria will be West Ham talisman Marko Arnautovic, the forward now have five in five on international duty.
As for Stanislav Cherchesov s World Cup hosts, although Russia may h…
Timo Werner has acknowledged he will likely need to leave RB Leipzig if he wants to establish himself as a world-class forward.
The Germany international has developed into one of the Bundesliga s most highly rated young players, particularly since joining Leipzig from Stuttgart in 2016.
Real Madrid, Barcelona, Liverpool and AC Milan have all been linked with the 22-year-old, while Bayern Munich have reportedly identified the striker as the ideal potential replacement for Robert Lewandowski.
And Werner thinks he will only become one of the world s best players if he follows the example of team-mate Naby Keita, who is to join Liverpool on July 1.
To become a world-class player, I ll probably have to play in an even better team at club level, Werner told W…
Harry Redknapp allowed full-back Gareth Bale to get the proverbial monkey off his back last Saturday as Tottenham brushed Burnley aside 5-0.
Bale finally tasted his first victory in a Premier League match at the 25th time of asking after Redknapp brought Bale on in the 86th-minute for Aaron Lennon against the Clarets.
The 19-year-old Welsh star joined Spurs more than two years ago from Southampton but was not involved in a league win until the weekend, but his wait for a top-flight victory after starting a game continues.
Late strikes by Fulham and Liverpool in 2008 denied him a league success, then a foot injury in a defeat to Birmingham ruled the teenager out for the remainder of that campaign.
Last term saw Spurs fail to win in the league unti…
Charlie Davies, a 23-year-old forward for the United States, underwent surgery Tuesday afternoon after being injured in a one-car crash early Tuesday morning, US Soccer Federation officials said.
Davies, who plays for the French club Sochaux, suffered injuries that were not life-threatening and was in stable condition after being taken to a nearby hospital following the 3:15 a.m. wreck in Virginia near the team hotel.
It was not certain exactly what injuries Davies had suffered or whether or not they might jeopardize his career.
Police were investigating the circumstances around the crash, in which there was a fatality, US Soccer officials said.
Davies was not missed immediately because a morning team breakfast was optional but US coach Bob Bradley gathe…
Turin-based newspaper that Juventus plan to return for Genoa striker Alberto Gilardino.
The Bianconeri attempted to sign the experienced forward on transfer deadline day and even agreed a transfer fee with the player s employers, but the deal failed to materialize as Genoa missed out on Roma s Marco Borriello.
Juventus, nevertheless, plan to launch a new assault on the 31-year-old forward, but they will probably wait until the summer before making their move.
According to Tuttosport, Genoa are prepared to allow Gilardino to move to Turin next summer, so no doubts the Bianconeri remain the favourites to sign the Italy international.
Following a somewhat disappointing 2011/2012 season, the forward has kick-started his career last term, scoring 13 goals in…