Former Argentina international Pablo Aimar has retired after failing to earn a spot in River Plate s squad for the semi-final stage of the Copa Libertadores.
Aimar, who only made his playing return to boyhood club River Plate in May, managed two appearances with the Buenos Aires-based club in his second stint due to injuries, before calling time on his career on Tuesday.
After being told by coach Marcelo Gallardo that he would not be included in the extended squad to be used in the semi-finals and potentially final of the Copa Libertadores, Aimar decided to hang up his boots.
Yesterday they advised me that I will not be on the list of the Copa [Libertadores], and I understand, the 35-year-old wrote in a letter to his team-mates.
I do not want to occupy …
For a club of Valencia s history and standing, they have to be competing with the best in Europe, according to goalkeeper Mathew Ryan, who is determined to lead the club back into the Champions League.
Valencia will not be playing in Europe this season following their nightmare 2015-16 campaign, which saw the club part ways with two coaches as they finished 12th in LaLiga.
Last term came on the back of much promise in 2014-15, after the six-time Spanish champions and two-time Champions League runners-up qualified for Europe s premier club competition, having broken into LaLiga s top four.
But after the disappointment of last season, Ryan and Co. have set their sights on the Champions League play-off spots, the Australia international telling Omnisport: For a c…
Harry Kane remains a Tottenham player with the new Premier League season set to commence.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has declared their interest in signing the England international.
The situation has been at a standstill and remains unresolved.
TOP STORY CITY READY TO UP KANE BID
Manchester City are willing to pay €150m (£127m) for Harry Kane as they try to convince Tottenham to sell their captain, claims The Guardian via Fabrizio Romano.
Spurs have reiterated Kane is not for sale this off-season despite the forward s reported request to leave late last season.
Tottenham turned down a €117m (£100m) bid previously, which is the same amount City spent to sign Jack Grealish from Aston Villa.
Manchester …
Atletico Madrid started the defence of their LaLiga title with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Celta Vigo, aided by Angel Correa s double and a dreadful miss from Iago Aspas.
Correa struck either side of Aspas penalty before both teams had a player sent off in stoppage time, Mario Hermoso and Hugo Mallo seeing red after a confrontation between the pair.
Matters might have been a little easier for Atleti if not for a rather soft Celta spot-kick, Marcos Llorente harshly adjudged to have handled.
Correa – starting up top with Luis Suarez on the bench – ultimately settled the contest with a cool finish, though Aspas sliced wide of an open goal with 10 minutes remaining to let Diego Simeone s side off the hook.
The game s first shot on target led to th…
Borussia Dortmund manager Juergen Klopp has apologised for the club s inability to keep pace with Bundesliga leaders Bayern Munich.
Dortmund have dominated the Bundesliga for two successive seasons, winning back-to-back titles but it has been a disappointing campaign thus far for the defending champions.
Rivals Munich sit a mammoth 20 points clear atop the table with nine games remaining and are poised to claim their first Bundesliga crown since 2010.
Maybe I should take the opportunity to apologise for the missing tension in the championship, Klopp said.
However, we d given our best, to keep the tension. Everybody has tried to keep the distance to Bayern within reach. This extends to almost every competition.
There is also a thrilling battle …
At least the Los Angeles Galaxy can expect one of their loaned-out stars to come home next week.
Landon Donovan, who has been on loan to the Bundesliga s Bayern Munich, will return to the team next week, the Major League Soccer club announced on Thursday.
Donovan, who turned 27 on Wednesday, has scored four goals in five friendly matches with Bayern, including a two-goal performance against German second-division Mainz 05 on January 22.
Donovan will return March 10 nearly a fortnight before the Galaxy s season opener against DC United on March 22.
We are looking forward to Landon re-joining the club next week as we continue our final preparations for the 2009 MLS Season, Galaxy general manager and head coach Bruce Arena said.
He is a very impor…
Real Madrid have handed a new long-term contract to Brazilian midfielder Casemiro.
The 23-year-old impressed on loan at Porto last season, prompting the Primeira Liga club to activate a clause to sign him permanently.
However, Real exercised their option to keep hold of Casemiro, who played for Sao Paulo in his homeland prior to his arrival at the Santiago Bernabeu in 2013, and he duly featured as a substitute in Saturday s 5-0 victory over Real Betis.
He has now committed his future to Madrid for the next six years, the club confirming Casemiro had signed a contract that runs until June 2021.
…
The Football Association has confirmed that Hull City midfielder Jake Livermore will not face a ban for using cocaine.
Livermore was suspended by the FA in May after testing positive in the aftermath of a 2-0 at Crystal Palace, and was facing the prospect of a lengthy sanction.
However, the 25-year-old has avoided punishment due to the specific and
00000672
unique nature of the circumstances surrounding the case .
Livermore s failed test came in the aftermath of an inquest into the death of his young child in May 2014, with an independent regulatory commission s full written reasons accepting there were mitigating factors involved.
The FA added in its reasons: The commission having carefully considered and taking into account all evidence relating to th…
According to , an agreement has been reached between D.C. United, Everton and Wayne Rooney s representative Paul Stretford regarding the former England and Manchester United captain moving to Washington, ending his 16-year spell in the English Premier League.
Rooney started his professional career at Everton before moving to Manchester United in 2004, being just under 19 years old. He made 559 appearances and scored 253 goals for the Red Devils, winning a host of trophies including five Premier League titles, a Champions League and a Europa League trophy.
He returned to his boyhood club in the summer of 2017 as a seasoned player, well past his best, but he still played 40 games in all competitions, mostly in a midfield role from which he found the net 11 times.
…
Ronald Koeman has confirmed Everton are keen on signing Charlton Athletic youngster Ademola Lookman, but was more dismissive of other transfer links.
The Dutchman conceded there was interest in the boy , referencing the 19-year-old Charlton forward, who only made his professional debut in November 2015.
Lookman has scored seven goals this season for the mid-table League One side and has caps to his name at England Under-19 and U-20 level.
But Everton boss Koeman was not so willing to divulge any further information on possible targets, adding: We are working on that. We have some interest in certain players, but we need to keep that inside.
Some names are true, some are not true. Most of the time it s b******t!
The Toffees travel to Hull City o…