Erik ten Hag has admitted Manchester United’s new-look midfield must click quickly after a stuttering start in Monday’s victory over Wolves.
Raphael Varane’s 76th-minute header gave United three points at Old Trafford, but Wolves were worth at least a point after registering 23 shots at goal and being denied a stoppage-time penalty that even Premier League referees’ boss Jon Moss later acknowledged should have been given.
Much of the focus was put on an underwhelming display from United’s engine room after the match. Ten Hag disputed suggestions that Casemiro had been left isolated as both Bruno Fernandes and Mason Mount pushed forward, but he admitted much better is needed away to Tottenham on Saturday.
Getting ready for Saturday s game at Tottenham. …
Roy Hodgson admits every Premier League manager is looking for a player like Declan Rice to anchor their team as he prepares his Crystal Palace side to come up against the England midfielder on Monday.
The 24-year-old’s £105million move to Arsenal from West Ham last month made him one of four players in his position to have been bought for a nine-figure fee by European clubs during the last eight months, as the value placed by top sides on central midfielders has rocketed.
Rice is part of an elite group that includes World Cup-winner Enzo Fernandez and his new Chelsea team-mate Moises Caicedo – both signed by the Blues for British record fees – and England’s Jude Bellingham, who joined Real Madrid in July, with each having been signed for fees that could exceed …
Exiled Schalke midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng will train with AC Milan until the end of 2015, paving the way for the Ghana international to return to the Serie A club permanently.
Following May s 2-0 Bundesliga defeat at Cologne, Boateng and team-mate Sidney Sam were indefinitely suspended by Schalke.
A proposed August switch to Sporting Lisbon broke down due to a disagreement over Boateng s image rights but, having previously expressed his openness to playing for a club he represented between 2010 and 2013, the 28-year-old is back in training with Milan.
He is under contract at Schalke until the end of this season so would be unable to play competitively for Milan before January if coach Sinisa Mihajlovic pursues a formal transfer.
Boateng is expected…
Liverpool attacker Daniel Sturridge believes his partnership with team-mate Luis Suarez can go down as one of the greats.
The two have forged an impressive early understanding in Brendan Rodgers side and Sturridge believes it can only get better with time.
It s early days but the signs are that we re playing well together. I m sure that will continue, he told The Telegraph.
As you play with someone more regularly, you do things telepathically, you know where they re going to be and you start playing off the cuff.
Sturridge returns to Manchester City on Sunday hoping to prove a point to his old employers after he left the club for Chelsea in 2009.
While he showed potential and promise at City and then Chelsea, the 23-year-old believes he will f…
Memphis Depay has claimed he is at his best at Lyon following a superb season for the Ligue 1 side.
Depay, who joined Lyon from Manchester United in January 2017, has returned to the scintillating form he enjoyed at PSV Eindhoven prior to his move to the Premier League, scoring 17 goals and accumulating 14 assists so far.
And, in an interview with the Ligue 1 club s official channel OLTV, Depay revealed he has felt rejuvenated since the start of the campaign.
I think I m at my best right now. I feel very free on the field, the 24-year-old said.
I have confidence, and that s good. I don t think too much about the pitch. I m just enjoying the moment.
I ve felt the difference since the beginning of the season. It s important for me to play every…
Isco hinted that he could sign a contract extension with Real Madrid after his two-goal heroics against Sporting Gijon.
The Spain playmaker has struggled for regular game time under Zinedine Zidane this season and has been frequently linked with a stunning move to Madrid s fierce rivals Barcelona rumours exacerbated by a Catalan-themed packet of crisps that made its way into the 24-year-old s social media feeds recently.
Madrid twice fought back from a goal down against the relegation-threatened side at the Santiago Bernabeu on Saturday, before Isco s 90th-minute winner kept them on track for a first league title since 2012.
And with rumours of a six-year deal being on the table, Isco said he will make the right decision along with Madrid.
I have always …
Lionel Messi was replaced at half-time in Paris Saint-Germain s clash with Lille on Friday as the superstar forward s Ligue 1 goal drought continued.
The Argentina international was a big fitness doubt for the contest at Parc des Princes after sitting out training on Thursday with a muscle injury.
He was deemed fit enough to start but was not a decisive figure in the first half, failing to find the target from his two shots.
With Kylian Mbappe also absent due to illness, Mauricio Pochettino decided to replace Messi with Mauro Icardi at the interval as PSG trailed 1-0.
Messi remains without a Ligue 1 goal in five matches since joining the French giants from Barcelona on a free transfer in August.
His 15 shots is the most of any player yet to score…
Pastorello posted a picture to social media with the pair on a plane and the caption read: Ready to take off …. direction Milan!!! @inter… we are coming.
Lukaku landed at Milan s Malpensa Airport on Thursday morning and he was greeted by rapturous Inter supporters.
Belgium international Lukaku, who has acknowledged a desire to play in Italy, scored 12 Premier League goals in 2018-19.
The 26-year-old – contracted to United until 2022 – scored 15 goals across all competitions as United finished sixth in the Premier League and lost to Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-finals last season.
Lukaku is set to leave United having scored 42 goals in all competitions since joining the Red Devils from Everton in 2017.
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Carlo Ancelotti believes Eden Hazard will recover his best form soon after Real Madrid battled past Alcoyano in the Copa del Rey.
Hazard started just his ninth game of 2021-22 in Wednesday s 3-1 victory against the third-tier outfit, who famously beat Madrid in this competition a year ago.
Dani Vega s excellent run and finish cancelled out Eder Militao s opener for Madrid, who were without several first-team regulars including Thibaut Courtois, David Alaba, Dani Carvajal, Luka Modric and Karim Benzema.
Substitutes Marco Asensio and Isco eventually secured a hard-fought win, the former scoring via a deflected effort following Hazard s lay-off before Isco diverted the ball in off goalkeeper Jose Juan.
Hazard, Rodrygo and Mariano Diaz struggled to combine ef…
AFCON matchday preview: Favourites Senegal and Morocco get started as COVID-19 continues to wreak ha
The Africa Cup of Nations is in full swing following its big kick-off on Sunday, and Monday sees the action taken up a notch.
There will be twice as many games as Group B and Group C get under way, providing first opportunities to see two of the pre-tournament favourites: Morocco and Senegal.
But the shroud of COVID-19 lingers over practically every AFCON match at the moment, and it will be especially difficult to ignore its impact on games on Monday, with the likes of Senegal, Guinea, Malawi and Gabon all missing key players.
Senegal v Zimbabwe (13:00 GMT)
Senegal s second so-called golden generation is running out of time.
They arrived in Cameroon with a stacked squad, but many of their key players are approaching 30 or are already there.
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