Hansi Flick has been impressed by Bayer Leverkusen so far this season but remains confident Bayern Munich can come out on top in the battle of the Bundesliga s top two on Saturday.
Leverkusen hold top spot in the table heading into the game at their BayArena home, the final outing for both clubs before the mid-season break in Germany.
Peter Bosz s side are unbeaten after the opening 12 league games this season, the first time that has happened for them since the 2009-10 campaign. However, Bayern have won three of their last four games in Leverkusen, including a 4-2 triumph there in June.
On the eve of the much-anticipated clash, Flick outlined the challenges his team will face on the road, though also made clear the size of the task facing Leverkusen p…
Vancouver Whitecaps defender Ranko Veselinovic believes their togetherness will get them through their tough spot as they prepare to welcome Minnesota United in MLS.
The Whitecaps have already clinched a playoff spot, but have struggled in recent weeks, drawing one and losing three, with their last league win coming against San Jose Earthquakes on September 15.
They sit seventh in the Western Conference, with Minnesota just one place and one point below them, and Veselinovic hopes they can find a solution to their recent blip to put a bigger gap between them.
We feel like we can do better, he said. Seattle was a really poor performance, so we need to find a way to be better on Saturday.
Now it s all about the mental side. We need to find a way, we don t…
Rodrygo has his sights set on World Cup glory with Brazil later this year following his call-up to the squad.
The Real Madrid winger has been selected by Tite for his nation s qualifiers against Ecuador and Paraguay this week.
The Selecao, who sit top of the CONMEBOL qualifying table, are already guaranteed a place in Qatar having collected 35 points from their opening 13 matches.
Rodrygo has three senior caps to his name and knows the upcoming games present an opportunity for him to stake his claim to appear at the finals, and helping Brazil claim a sixth World Cup triumph – and first since 2002 – tops his priority list for this calendar year.
It is very important for me to be [back in the] Brazil [squad], he said in quotes reported on Marca via…
Neymar is relishing the chance to create more happy memories at the Santiago Bernabeu after declaring himself fully fit for Paris Saint-Germain s Champions League last-16 second leg with Real Madrid.
The Brazil international spent four seasons with Madrid s bitter rivals Barcelona prior to joining PSG in 2017, winning eight trophies – including the European Cup in 2014-15 – during his time in Spain.
He has found the net three times in 11 appearances against Los Blancos with PSG and Barca, two of those goals coming at the Bernabeu, including in a 4-0 LaLiga victory for the Catalans in November 2015.
Neymar had been considered a major doubt for the first leg with Madrid three weeks ago, but he made his return from a near-three-month injury lay-off to play the …
David Moyes apologised for losing his cool with a ball boy after he was sent off as West Ham missed out on a place in the Europa League final.
Manager Moyes was ordered to the stands late on for kicking a ball thrown by the ball boy as West Ham lost 1-0 on the night to Eintracht Frankfurt and 3-1 on aggregate.
I kicked a ball back at the ballboy, so I apologise for that, he threw the ball very softly at me, Moyes said on BT Sport.
Television footage of the incident showed an angry Moyes lashing out.
Moyes team were forced to play most of the match with a numerical disadvantage after Aaron Cresswell s 18th-minute sending off made him the first Englishman to receive a red card in a European semi-final since John Terry for Chelsea against Barcelona in th…
Ben White has signed a new contract at Arsenal as the defender admits it is “unbelievable” to have found his home at the Emirates Stadium.
The 26-year-old has agreed a new four-year deal, with the option for a further 12 months in north London, the PA news agency understands.
White has been a vital part of Mikel Arteta’s side as they sit top of the Premier League and prepare for a first Champions League quarter-final appearance in 14 years.
Benjamin White, as told by his team-mates
— Arsenal (@Arsenal)
He featured in every Premier League game last season as Arsenal were pipped at the post by treble-winners Manchester City but has further impressed in his role at right-back this campaign.
Having come through the ranks at Brighton,…
Wrexham lost £5million in the year of their promotion to the English Football League and now owe nearly £9m to Hollywood owners Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds.
But turnover doubled to almost £10.5m and Wrexham say financial losses suffered since McElhenney and Reynolds’ takeover in February 2021 should not be repeated due to the income now generated by the League Two club.
“The amount owed to The RR McReynolds Company, LLC (owned by McElhenney and Reynolds) at the year-end was £8.977m (2022: £3.714m),” read a Wrexham statement.
“The financial losses suffered by the club since the takeover shouldn’t be repeated, with income generated by the club now sufficient to meet the operational costs of the club going forward.
STATEMENT | Wrexham AFC…
Gareth Southgate says he is keeping an open mind about what comes next in his career but is in no hurry to rush back into football.
Southgate stepped down as England manager in July, shortly after England s second consecutive European Championship final defeat.
The 54-year-old was in charge of the Three Lions for eight years, leading the team through four major tournaments, while only Walter Winterbottom (139) and Alf Ramsey (113) managed more games for the national team than Southgate (102).
England are still searching for a new permanent manager, with interim head coach Lee Carsley impressing in his first two matches, leading the team to consecutive 2-0 wins over the Republic of Ireland and Finland in the Nations League.
Southgate has been linked with a…
The Netherlands must tackle France in the Euro 2022 quarter-finals after Sweden denied the defending champions top spot in Group C on Sunday.
Both teams won in their final group games, meaning they finished level on seven points and were separated by goal difference, having drawn when they faced each other earlier in the tournament.
Sweden thumped Portugal 5-0 while the Netherlands were 4-1 winners against Switzerland following a rush of late goals. Sweden finished with a plus-six goal difference, two better than the Netherlands achieved.
It means that five years on from triumphing on home soil, the Dutch must do it the hard way if they are to go deeper into this tournament, with France having caught the eye, particularly in their 5-1 rout of Italy.
Fran…
Fulham 2-1 Chelsea: Carlos Vinicius piles more pressure on Potter after debutant Joao Felix sent off
Debutant Joao Felix s red card proved costly as Carlos Vinicius earned Fulham a 2-1 win over west London rivals Chelsea that piles even more pressure on head coach Graham Potter.
Joao Felix was named in injury-hit Chelsea s starting line-up for Thursday s Premier League contest, a day after joining on loan from Atletico Madrid, and saw red for a lunge on Kenny Tete shortly before the hour mark.
Chelsea had fought their way back into the match at the time of that dismissal after Kalidou Koulibaly s close-range finish cancelled out former Blues winger Willian s first-half opener at Craven Cottage.
Fulham were without suspended top scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic, but Carlos Vinicius headed in his first Fulham goal in the 73rd minute to land his side a rare win in this f…