Best Odds: 4/5
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Looking to make an immediate return to winning ways in midweek, Manchester City will welcome Southampton to an empty Etihad on Wednesday evening.
Manchester City
Starting with the hosts, after watching their remarkable 21-match winning run come to an end over the weekend, Manchester City will be desperate to start rebuilding that record from scratch. With bitter rivals Manchester United landing a shock 2-0 victory at The Etihad, Pep Guardiola s men will be looking to prove that was just a minor blip. Still managing to hold onto a commanding 11-point buffer at the top of the Premier League table, The Sky Blues still appear to be cruising towards their third domestic crown in four years. With many around the blue half of Manchester still…
Eric Abidal has posted an image of his cousin in hospital as he again moved to reject claims that former Barcelona president Sandro Rosell illegally bought him a liver.
The former France defender required a transplant in 2012 after the discovery of a tumour on his liver, with his cousin Gerard reportedly having donated the organ.
Spanish press this week reported that Rosell, who was arrested in 2017 as part of a money-laundering investigation, purchased the liver.
On Wednesday, Barcelona rejected claims of any wrongdoing, while Abidal and the Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, where he underwent the procedure, also denied the allegations.
Abidal, who is now the club s technical secretary, posted a picture on Twitter in tribute to his family member with the ac…
Bayer Leverkusen captain Simon Rolfes insists previous injuries played no part in his decision to retire at the end of the season.
The midfielder, who turns 33 next month, announced earlier this month his decision to call time on his playing career at the conclusion of the campaign, after 10 years at Leverkusen
Rolfes, capped 26 times by Germany, sustained a serious knee injury that ruled him out of contention for the 2010 World Cup, while he was troubled by an ankle complaint earlier this term.
However, the Leverkusen skipper stated that past injuries are not the reason for him hanging up his boots and that his decision is influenced by a desire to bow out at the top.
No, I would not say that [injuries are the reason for retiring]. I am fighting fi…
Kevin Strootman s expected move to Marseille seems to be edging closer after the midfielder was left out of Roma s squad for their Serie A match against Atalanta.
Roma coach Eusebio Di Francesco has confirmed discussions are ongoing with Marseille over a move for Strootman, who joined from PSV in 2013.
And it seems the midfielder s switch to the Ligue 1 club is nearing completion, with Di Francesco omitting the Netherlands international out of his squad for Monday s clash at Stadio Olimpico.
Strootman, 28, would be the third star to leave Roma this transfer window, with Radja Nainggolan having joined Serie A rivals Inter and Alisson moving to Liverpool for a then world-record fee for a goalkeeper.
SQUAD LIST | | v Atalanta (h)
Here is our 24…
Nathan Ake has completed his lucrative £20 million move to Bournemouth from Chelsea.
The 22-year-old defender made only 17 appearances for the Blues in the five years he was part of the senior setup, and spent the first half of last season on loan at the Cherries.
Ake has already played twice for Netherlands, and could be in line for a place in the World Cup squad next year if the Dutch get there.
Signed for a fee in the region of £230,000 at the age of 16, Ake represents another player who Chelsea have made a huge profit on.
Indeed, only seven players have been sold for a higher fee from the Blues. Here, we look at their most lucrative sales.
OSCAR TO SHANGHAI SIPG £60M
Signed for just under £20 million back in July 2012, Oscar…
Four teams have the chance to win promotion from the Championship to the Premier League
Earlier this week I wrote an article on Bournemouth and their charge for promotion to the Premier League from the Championship.
The Cherries are now second in the league and the fight for the big money promotion is now tighter than ever.
Four
The finish line is close for the Championship’s top teams and it is now down to four teams for the automatic promotion places.
Middlesbrough went top of the table last night with a crucial 1-0 victory over rivals Norwich on Friday night, after Alexander Tettey scored an own goal.
Watford host Birmingham at Vicarage Road on Saturday and a win will move them above Borough. Bournemouth will go back to the top of th…
Zinedine Zidane revealed he left LaLiga giants Real Madrid as the club no longer has the faith in me I need .
Zidane called time on his second spell with Madrid after Los Blancos were dethroned by city rivals Atletico Madrid in LaLiga this past season.
The 48-year-old Frenchman returned to the Santiago Bernabeu in March 2019, having delivered three successive Champions League titles and one LaLiga trophy between January 2016 and May 2018.
While Zidane led Madrid to LaLiga glory in 2019-20, the Spanish capital side endured a difficult 2020-21 campaign – eliminated by minnows Alcoyano in the Copa del Rey, edged out by Chelsea in the Champions League semi-finals, and pipped to back-to-back LaLiga trophies by Atletico.
Zidane lifted the lid on his Madrid e…
Arsenal struck a potentially significant blow in the race for the Premier League top four with a 2-0 win over Manchester United at Emirates Stadium on Sunday.
A Granit Xhaka strike and a second-half penalty from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who missed from the spot in the 1-1 draw with Tottenham last week, gave the Gunners three valuable points that lift them into fourth.
The result also ends United s nine-game winning run away from home under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, just four days on from their dramatic Champions League victory over Paris Saint-Germain.
Arsenal started positively but should have been behind nine minutes in, when Romelu Lukaku steered Luke Shaw s low cross against the crossbar from six yards out.
The Gunners punished that miss three minute…
With another weekend of action from across England ahead, we here at Soccer News have found a handful of helpful tips that can potentially boost your Saturday acca:
Saturday 1st December
15:00 Newcastle vs West Ham
While it may have been a sluggish start for Newcastle at the start of the season, Rafa Benitez s side appear to have finally found their feet. Picking up a 2-1 win away at Burnley on Monday night, the Magpies are now enjoying three wins on the bounce and are unbeaten in their last four. Putting in their best run of performances in recent memory, fans in the north west will also be boosted by their recent record against the Hammers. Putting three past their guests the last time the two sides met last season, they have also won the last three connective meetin…
Raheem Sterling urged calm and offered some perspective amid criticism of England s 0-0 draw with Scotland in their second game at Euro 2020.
England have come under intense pressure for their underwhelming performance against Scotland, with expectations high about the team s prospects having reached the 2018 World Cup semi-finals.
Sterling said the doom and gloom needed to subside, pointing to previous champions at both European Championships and World Cups who had started slowly.
England have four points from their opening two games in Group D, with Sterling scoring the winner in their opening 1-0 victory over Croatia, ahead of Tuesday s group finale against the Czech Republic.
[England manager] Gareth [Southgate] showed us some stats on teams that hav…