There was a time when Ashley Barnes was being touted for a call-up by Austria. Now there is a legitimate case to answer over whether an England cap should be out of the question. Despite being born in Bath – and having the West Country twang to prove it – the 29-year-old has represented Austria, the country of his paternal grandmother’s birth, at under-20 level. His hopes of a senior call-up...
They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. It certainly did for Real Madrid. Zinedine Zidane left the Spanish capital in the summer of 2018 after claiming three consecutive Champions League titles. He returned in March with Los Blancos already out of Europe’s premier club competition and languishing 12 points behind Barcelona in LaLiga. The Frenchman wasn’t taken for granted at the Santiago...
The Bundesliga returns tonight with champions Bayern Munich kicking things off in Bavaria against Hertha. Niko Kovač’s star-studded squad has been added to this summer, with the 29-time German champions recruiting Benjamin Pavard, Lucas Hernandez and one-time Borussia Dortmund player Ivan Perišić. But their rivals for their Bundesliga crown have also strengthened with BVB using the money r...
Alexis Sánchez: the worst signing in Manchester United history? It’s certainly difficult to argue against such a statement. There have been several high-profile players to have struggled at Old Trafford – think Juan Sebastián Verón, Kléberson and most recently Ángel Di María – and instances of money being squandered: Bebé, anyone? Yet none of these signings had club-altering ramifications. N...
There was a time when Ashley Barnes was being touted for a call-up by Austria. Now there is a legitimate case to answer over whether an England cap should be out of the question. Despite being born in Bath – and having the West Country twang to prove it – the 29-year-old has represented Austria, the country of his paternal grandmother’s birth, at under-20 level. His hopes of a senior call-up...
They say absence makes the heart grow fonder. It certainly did for Real Madrid. Zinedine Zidane left the Spanish capital in the summer of 2018 after claiming three consecutive Champions League titles. He returned in March with Los Blancos already out of Europe’s premier club competition and languishing 12 points behind Barcelona in LaLiga. The Frenchman wasn’t taken for granted at the Santiago...
The Bundesliga returns tonight with champions Bayern Munich kicking things off in Bavaria against Hertha. Niko Kovač’s star-studded squad has been added to this summer, with the 29-time German champions recruiting Benjamin Pavard, Lucas Hernandez and one-time Borussia Dortmund player Ivan Perišić. But their rivals for their Bundesliga crown have also strengthened with BVB using the money r...
Alexis Sánchez: the worst signing in Manchester United history? It’s certainly difficult to argue against such a statement. There have been several high-profile players to have struggled at Old Trafford – think Juan Sebastián Verón, Kléberson and most recently Ángel Di María – and instances of money being squandered: Bebé, anyone? Yet none of these signings had club-altering ramifications. N...
It was not supposed to go like this for Watford. Buoyed by the club-record signing of Ismaïla Sarr, the surprise addition of England international Danny Welbeck and the return of their Z-Cars walk-on music, the Hornets were meant to brush aside brave Brighton & Hove Albion to begin 2019/20 with a routine three points. They had, after all, beaten the Seagulls on the opening weekend of last seas...
Manchester United’s 4-0 victory over Chelsea was a game of FIFA come to life. The scoreline didn’t tell the whole story; Frank Lampard’s side had more of the ball and landed more shots on target. Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s tactics, meanwhile, centred around utilising the pace of his forward line. Four goals and a clean sheet suggest the United boss got it right. Tipped as the second favourite manager...
Mohamed Salah was supposed to be a one-season wonder. His record-breaking 2017/18 campaign a one-off. On Friday, however, he scored for Liverpool in their opening match of the season for the third successive year. In the process, he took his tally to 55 Premier League goals in 75 appearances. Not a bad record for a Chelsea reject. Despite only having two starts under his belt prior to the match...