Fenerbahce will be without star striker Robin van Persie as they host Celtic needing a draw to qualify for the next round of the Europa League.
Vitor Pereira s men are on the brink of qualification and one point would be enough to seal a place in the knockout stages, while Ronny Deila s Celtic are already out of the competition after taking just two points from five Group H games.
Only pride is at stake for Celtic after defeat to Ajax sealed their fate in their last Europa League fixture, while Fenerbahce won 2-0 at Molde to keep their hopes alive.
A thigh injury has ruled Van Persie out of the Celtic match but the Netherlands striker has only scored five times since signing for Fenerbahce in the summer. Denmark defender Simon Kjaer and Portugal winger Nani are…
Best odds: 13/25
Bookmaker:
As the 2020-21 season slowly draws to its conclusion, Liverpool are set to welcome Aston Villa to Anfield on Saturday afternoon. It will be game 31 of the Premier League campaign for the home side, and 30 for the visitors.
Liverpool
After a brief upturn in fortunes for Jurgen Klopp s team, things took another downturn in midweek, and that has been the main talking point among their supporters these days. They went to Madrid to face Real at the Alfredo Di Stefano stadium on Tuesday and lost 3-1, courtesy of a double from Vinicius Junior and a composed finish from Marco Asensio, with Mohamed Salah scoring what may yet prove to be a vital away goal for the Reds.
Be that as it may, Liverpool are still working hard to get their fo…
Bordeaux coach Laurent Blanc took a major step towards replacing Raymond Domenech as France s national football team coach after expressing his wish to leave the club on Sunday.
Blanc, a World Cup and Euro winning defender with France as a player, led Bordeaux to the 2009 league title but his side could only finish sixth and out of the European places on Saturday s final round of league matches.
According to one unnamed player at the club, Blanc quit as Bordeaux coach on Sunday after informing his players of his decision.
Bordeaux subsequently released a statement which suggests he is set to accept the French football federation s (FFF) offer to replace current France coach Domenech when he leaves his post at the end of the 2010 World Cup.
The FC Girond…
AC Milan to sign Juraj Kucka
French media outlet that AC Milan have agreed a deal to sign Slovakian midfielder Juraj Kucka from Genoa.
The Rossoneri were looking to add a central midfielder to their ranks and they appear to have finally ended the search.
According to L Equipe, AC Milan have agreed a €3.5 million deal for Juraj Kucka, who will sign a three-year contract at San Siro.
The Rossoneri turned to the Slovakia international after failing to bring Sampdoria s Roberto Soriano to Milan.
Juraj Kucka, 28, has spent last four and a half years at Stadio Luigi Ferraris, making 122 Serie A appearances and scoring 9 goals.
His new team AC Milan play host to Empoli tomorrow, hoping to make amends for the opening defeat to Fiorentina and t…
Lautaro Martinez is very happy at Inter amid links to LaLiga giants Barcelona, according to his agent Beto Yaque.
Martinez has been tipped to leave Inter for Barca at the end of the season, though the Italian side have regularly insisted they have no plans to sell the star forward.
The 22-year-old s €111million (£98.8m) release clause expired in July and Yaque played down the prospect of a transfer from San Siro to Camp Nou.
Lautaro s transfer is more in the media than real life, Yaque told La Figura de la Cancha.
Lautaro has three years on his contract with Inter and is very happy where he is.
He s had a very good season, still has the Europa League to play for and I hope Inter can go all the way in that competition.
| THE GAFFE…
Inter came back from behind to beat Sassuolo 2-1 thanks to second-half goals from Edin Dzeko and Lautaro Martinez at the Mapei Stadium on Saturday.
Domenico Berardi put his side in front from the penalty spot in the first half after Jeremie Boga was tripped by Milan Skriniar.
However, Dzeko equalised with a second-half header just a minute after being brought on, before winning the penalty that fellow striker Martinez converted to hand the Nerazzurri all three points.
The result lifts Inter into second place just one point behind Serie A leaders Napoli, who have a game in hand.
12 Inter have scored 2+ goals in 12 league matches in a row, overtaking their longest such run in the competition (11), recorded in 1943. Troops.
— OptaPaolo (@OptaPa…
Poland s football association, the PZPN, on Thursday rejected rumours that national manager Franciszek Smuda was resigning, after the Euro 2012 hosts winless streak stretched to eight games.
There is speculation that that the manager has quit. Nothing of the sort has happened. Franciszek Smuda continues to lead the team, a PZPN spokeswoman said.
Smuda is facing mounting criticism of his tactics, as Poland prepare for the next edition of the European championships, just over 600 days away.
Poland drew 2-2 with Ecuador during a friendly in Montreal, Canada, on Tuesday, following the same scoreline on Saturday against the United States in Chicago.
Like fellow Euro 2012 hosts Ukraine, Poland are guaranteed a berth at the tournament and so must rely on frien…
Jack Butland is set to sign a new five year deal at Stoke City, .
The England international has been in stunning form for Mark Hughes’ side this season leading Liverpool and Manchester United to be linked with a move for his services.
However this new proposed deal will see him committed to the Potters til the end of the 2020-21 campaign.
Butland moved to the Britannia Stadium from Birmingham City in January 2013 but until this season had made just a handful of appearances for the club spending much of his time out on loan in spells with Barnsley, Leeds United and Derby County.
Despite having won just three senior international caps, he is almost certain to be part of Roy Hodgson’s squad for this summer’s European Championships in France where …
Market: Both teams to score
Odds:
Still a side drastically short of form and going through their worst run in recent memory, former World champions Germany will host last summers hosts Russia at the Red Bull Arena on Thursday.
Starting with the hosts, although Joachim Löw would have been desperate to put their woeful World Cup behind them, Germany have still been unable to find any kind of form. Despite leading against France last month, the Whites could only slump to a 2-1 defeat in Paris, coupled with their 3-0 hammering away at Holland, they have now been able to win just one of their last five matches. Failing to make it out of the group stage in Russia, the former world champions have now managed to record just one clean sheet since November 2017.
<…
Scotland aim to build on their flying start to their European Championship qualifying group when they face Norway in Oslo on Saturday.
Steve Clarke’s side made a perfect start in March against Cyprus and Spain with five goals and two clean sheets, while Norway only collected one point.
Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the major talking points ahead of the encounter.
How do you stop Haaland?
The most incredible of debut seasons
— Premier League (@premierleague)
With 21 goals in 23 internationals, Erling Haaland’s goalscoring rate for his country is similar to the records he has set at Salzburg, Borussia Dortmund and now Manchester City. Steve Clarke has decisions to make over who goes up against a striker who netted 52 goals for t…