Zinedine Zidane proclaimed he has the Real Madrid DNA and said the club is his life as he prepares Los Blancos for the Champions League final against Juventus.
Madrid are seeking to become the first team to defend the title since the competition was rebranded into the Champions League when they travel to Cardiff for Saturday s showpiece.
Zidane is yet to sign a new contract extension despite leading Madrid to their first league title since the 2011-12 campaign but the Frenchman is relaxed about his future.
I have one more year on my contract but that doesn t mean anything, Zidane told reporters on Tuesday. I want to be at this club but it depends on what you do on the field.
I think the club is happy with what we re doing and I m only interested in that…
Neymar and Kylian Mbappe left Fabio Capello cold with their performances for Paris Saint-Germain against Manchester City.
Italian coaching great Capello sees little prospect of a PSG comeback in the second leg of the Champions League semi-final, after City snatched a 2-1 win at Parc des Princes.
The Ligue 1 giants took a 15th-minute lead through captain Marquinhos, but Kevin De Bruyne s cross bounced beyond Keylor Navas and into the corner just after the hour mark to put City level.
The PSG defensive wall then cracked to allow Riyad Mahrez to score from a free-kick seven minutes later.
Neymar had two shots in the first 15 minutes, which both hit the target, but Mbappe did not have a single goal attempt.
Neither reached the heights they are capabl…
Napoli chairman Aurelio De Laurentiis has paid tribute to Marek Hamsik ahead of the midfielder s expected move to China, telling him he is always welcome at Stadio San Paolo.
Carlo Ancelotti confirmed at the weekend that Hamsik had asked to leave Napoli, with reports suggesting he could sign for Dalian Yifang as soon as Monday.
De Laurentiis would not confirm the apparently imminent switch at a news conference, but he explained why he was willing to sanction the departure of a club icon.
Hamsik asked to leave at a time when we are more than consolidated in midfield, said De Laurentiis. This would not give us a problem and Ancelotti gave his approval.
There is a big difference between the Chinese and the Neapolitans and now let s see what happens. I hav…
Eden Hazard does not care about scoring goals as the Chelsea star eyes trophies at Stamford Bridge.
Hazard hit the headlines with a sensational solo goal to lead Chelsea to a come-from-behind 2-1 win over Liverpool in the third round of the EFL Cup.
Wednesday s stunning individual effort took Hazard s tally to six goals for the season in all competitions, with five of those coming in the Premier League.
However, Hazard – who has won two Premier League titles, the Europa League, FA Cup and EFL Cup since arriving from Lille in 2012 – is more concerned about silverware and not goals.
Still watching
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC)
I don t have [goal] targets to be fair my only target is to win something every year. I want to win trophies,…
Kylian Mbappe denied he almost quit France duty due to criticism of his Euro 2020 displays, revealing it was racist abuse that almost pushed him to retire from Les Bleus.
French Football Federation president Noel Le Graet told Le Journal du Dimanche that Mbappe was angry and did not want to play for his country again after facing flak from angry fans.
The 23-year-old failed to score in any of his four outings in last year s competition, with France surprisingly eliminated by Switzerland in the last 16.
Paris Saint-Germain forward Mbappe missed the decisive spot-kick as the reigning world champions suffered a shock defeat on penalties following a 3-3 draw after extra time.
Mbappe responded to Le Graet s comments by saying on Twitter: Yes, however, I …
In a summer that has been stolen by future at the Nou Camp, new Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman certainly has quite the rebuilding job on his hands in Catalonia.
While their attacking icon might have reluctantly announced that he would be staying put at the former European champions this season, there is chaos behind the scenes and they are a side still feeling the effects of their embarrassing 8-2 defeat against Bayern Munich last month.
With Ivan Rakitić making a return to Sevilla last week and it appearing that Luis Suarez is inching closer to a move away from the Nou Camp, all eyes are on who Koeman could be bringing in the other direction.
With the European transfer window slamming shut on October 5th, who could be the big names on Koeman s Catalonia wishlis…
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Both the 2019 Gold Cup and the 2019 Copa America are right around the corner. This means national teams all over the CONMEBOL and CONCACAF region continue to prepare for each Confederation s biggest tournament. With that in mind, CONCACAF giants Mexico will take on an up-and-coming CONMEBOL side such as Venezuela in a neutral-venue friendly on the United States. This match will kick-off at 01:30 hrs BST.
Mexico
Mexico might be undergoing a transition period over newly-appointed manager Gerardo Martino. The CONCACAF giants have won just four of their last 12 friendly matches (W4, D1, L7), and it s clear their seven-defeats-in-12-matches mark doesn t have anyone happy around the Mexican camp. W…
Sergino Dest has categorically ruled out a move away from Barcelona this transfer window and is hoping to play a more prominent role for the Blaugrana this season.
The United States international has recently been linked with a move away from Camp Nou, with Chelsea reportedly among those interested.
Dest has spent the past two seasons at Barca, having joined from Ajax in a worth an initial €21million, and has made 70 appearances in all competitions.
That is a tally bettered only by seven other Barcelona players since his debut in October 2020, though he was restricted to just 23 starts last season after being hit by injuries.
He did not score any goals, while fellow full-back Jordi Alba (12) registered four times as many assists as his three.
Real Madrid head coach Zinedine Zidane refused to confirm whether Toni Kroos will still be at the club next season, stating there will be changes at the end of the campaign.
Kroos on Friday used Twitter to describe media reports he is planning to leave the club as absolutely false information .
The Germany international has been a key player for Madrid since joining from Bayern Munich in 2014, with Los Blancos winning the Champions League in each of the last three seasons.
Madrid are expected to spend heavily in the transfer market following Zidane s return, with Premier League players Paul Pogba, Eden Hazard and Christian Eriksen all reportedly targets, as well as Paris Saint-Germain forwards Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.
Kroos first-team opportunities coul…
Xavi has backed Pep Guardiola to change the face of English football when he takes over at Manchester City.
Legendary midfielder Xavi was a key member of Guardiola s all-conquering Barcelona team, which won 14 major trophies in just four seasons between 2008 and 2012.
Guardiola has since enjoyed a three-year stint at Bayern Munich, where he racked up seven major honours but still faced criticism for failing to win the Champions League.
However, veteran playmaker Xavi, who now plies his trade for Al Sadd in Qatar, expects his former boss to make a huge impact in the Premier League.
The 2010 World Cup winner told sc.qa: It is a big opportunity for him at Manchester City. I think he will change the face of English football.
If there is anyone capabl…