Mikel Arteta believes Arsenal are in need of a reset following Thursday s 2-0 Europa League defeat to PSV, which saw the Gunners miss the chance to top Group A with a game to spare.
The Premier League outfit proved uninspired from the off at the Philips Stadion, and had already seen Cody Gakpo and Xavi Simons have goals disallowed by the time Joey Veerman fired the hosts into the lead.
Half-time substitute Luuk de Jong added a second as PSV pressed home their advantage, dealing Arsenal their first defeat of their Europa League campaign.
The Gunners will now need to beat Zurich next week to be assured of top spot in their group, while Thursday s result follows on from a disappointing Premier League draw at Southampton on Sunday, leading Arteta to demand a reaction…
Crystal Palace forward Wilfried Zaha heaped praise on manager Patrick Vieira after a shock 2-0 victory over defending Premier League champions Manchester City.
Zaha opened the scoring in the sixth minute, becoming the first player to reach 50 goals in the Premier League for Palace, before Aymeric Laporte was sent off for bringing him down and Conor Gallagher wrapped up the points late on.
The unexpected win at the Etihad Stadium saw the Eagles end their run of four consecutive draws and rise to 13th in the table, and Zaha was quick to credit Vieira for the team s positive form.
Vieira ended his playing career at City and then began his coaching career with the north-west club, bossing the reserve team before moving on to sister club New York City FC. He had …
Fluminense playmaker Deco has indicated that Barcelona would be the best destination for Santos starlet Neymar.
The Champions League holders are understood to be one of the parties who have expressed an interest in the 19-year-old sensation, with rivals Real Madrid among their competition for the Brazil international s signature.
Both sides are reportedly doing their utmost to convince Neymar to join their respective teams, despite the player s wish to remain in Brazil until the end of the European season.
And Deco, who played at Barcelona between 2004 and 2008, said the Camp Nou outfit would better suit Neymar s style.
Neymar would find things easier at Barcelona than Real Madrid he would adapt to their playing style better because they have many quali…
Former Chelsea star Gianfranco Zola believes the intense spotlight on England s national team has been a barrier to success.
Italian Zola has first-hand experience of English football, with the forward setting the Premier League alight during seven years as a player with Chelsea between 1996 and 2003.
The 45-year-old, who was voted the club s greatest ever player in a fan poll, also spent two seasons as manager of east London club West Ham United.
And Zola feels constant media attention and public scrutiny is a cause of the England team s lack of success.
Their position is such a difficult position, because whatever you do it s always the wrong thing, Zola said when asked about England s prospects ahead of Saturday s friendly with Spain.
My pos…
Monaco s progression in the UEFA Champions League was a breakthrough moment for French football, according to coach Leonardo Jardim.
The club from the principality on the Mediterranean coast secured a berth in the Champions League s round of 16 on Tuesday, overcoming Zenit 2-0 to clinch top spot in Group C ahead of Bayer Leverkusen, the Russian outfit and Benfica.
Jardim clearly took some satisfaction in proving Monaco s critics wrong with his team having won their last two matches in Group C to storm to the top of the standings.
The win saw two French clubs Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain reach the last 16, the first time that has happened since the 2011-12 season when Marseille and Lyon progressed.
This qualification is important for me, but more so for…
Julio Cesar has effectively called time on his Brazil career after the hosts FIFA World Cup campaign ended in disastrous fashion.
Luiz Felipe Scolari s men were beaten 3-0 by Netherlands in Saturday s third-place play-off as Brazil suffered further humiliation following their 7-1 semi-final hammering at the hands of Germany four days earlier.
Cesar, 34, was recalled to the national side by Scolari last year having previously come under fire for his display in Brazil s 2-1 quarter-final loss to Netherlands at the 2010 World Cup.
But, after his 86th cap ended in defeat to the same opponents in Brasilia, the 34-year-old Cesar accepts that it is probably time for him to step aside.
This is probably my last World Cup, he said.
Cesar made his internati…
Real Madrid are expected to make big waves this summer. Zinedine Zidane has been reappointed after Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari had unsuccessful spells and with Champions League exit in round of 16 at the hands of Ajax, Florentino Perez will be making statements once the season Is over.
And Zidane has suggested that one move could easily be done when the time comes. However, it is about a player leaving the club, not joining. Zidane has suggested Marcos Llorente could be once again loaned out of Real Madrid.
Marcos needs to play more, Zidane said. That will be good for him. I remember the year he played at Alaves he played regularly and he had a phenomenal season.
The 24-year-old Spaniard spent the 2016/17 season on loan at Deportivo Alaves where he mad…
A delightful Xherdan Shaqiri free-kick secured Stoke City a 1-1 draw at Middlesbrough on Saturday, denying the promoted side all three points after ending their seven-year Premier League exile.
New signing Alvaro Negredo had initially given Boro an early lead, taking just 11 minutes to make his mark after two years away from English football, but a moment of genius from Shaqiri ultimately levelled things up in the second half.
Stoke were lucky not to find themselves 2-0 down at the break, though, as Gaston Ramirez hammered against the post shortly before half-time.
The visitors failed to produce much of a response but did eventually grow into proceedings in the second half and drew level with 23 minutes left – Shaqiri finding the net with a fine finish from a f…
Virgil van Dijk was made the world s most expensive defender by Liverpool and he wants to repay them by becoming a club legend.
The Netherlands international was signed from Southampton for £75million in December 2017 and has started every Premier League match this season, with Jurgen Klopp s side level on points with Manchester City at the top of the table.
Liverpool s charge towards a first title of the Premier League era will be tested at Manchester United on Sunday when they go up against a team unbeaten domestically under interim boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
But centre-back Van Dijk is taking a long-term view as he tries to lead Klopp s men into a period of success and silverware.
As a legend of Liverpool, Van Dijk told BBC Sport when asked how he wa…
Virgil van Dijk insisted he was unfazed by who Liverpool would face in the Champions League final, saying the Reds believed they could beat anyone.
Van Dijk helped Jurgen Klopp s men reach the decider for the second straight season with an extraordinary win over Barcelona on Tuesday.
Divock Origi and Georginio Wijnaldum scored braces in a 4-0 win at Anfield, sealing a 4-3 aggregate success in the semi-final.
They will face either Tottenham or Ajax in Madrid on June 1, but Van Dijk is not worried about Liverpool s opponents.
THIS TEAM!!
— Liverpool FC (@LFC)
We feel like [we can beat anyone] every time when we go out on the pitch, the star centre-back said.
We re not going out on the pitch to think that we re not going to beat…