Roberto Mancini will be searching for answers after Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup, and his mother has helpfully provided one: Mario Balotelli should have been called up.
Speaking on Rai Radio 1 on Friday, Marianna Puolo said Mancini s Azzurri would have benefited from Balotelli s power, and his inclusion could have staved off what played out in Palermo, where Italy lost 1-0 to North Macedonia.
Balotelli, a one-time teenage wonder who now plays for Adana Demirspor in Turkey s Super Lig, has long been a favourite with Mancini, dating back to their time together as player and coach at Inter and Manchester City.
Now 31, Balotelli earned a recall for an Italy training camp at the beginning of this year. He had not been capped by Italy since head coach Man…
Everton are interested in signing Motherwell’s forward and Scotland’s under-21 player James Scott, The People reports (as relayed by ).
The 19-year-old played for the Scottish Motherwell’s under-20s team in the Scottish Challenge Cup, where he made his debut in 2015, at the age of 15. He made his senior debut for the club in April 2018, when he came in as a late substitute during the team’s away game against Ross County in the Scottish Premiership. This year Scott was called to Scotland’s under-21 squad for the European under-21 Championship qualifiers against San Marino and Croatia and made his international debut against San Marino, coming in as a substitute.
Last season Scott made twelve appearances for his club and scored one goal, but this year has be…
Soon-to-be free agent Stephan Lichtsteiner revealed he will leave Italian champions Juventus and the Serie A as the Swiss full-back seeks a new challenge.
Lichtsteiner – out of contract in June – has won six successive Serie A titles since arriving from Lazio in 2011 and the 34-year-old is on the cusp of a seventh following Saturday s
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3-1 victory over Bologna.
After Juventus moved seven points clear of Scudetto rivals Napoli – who are due to play Torino Sunday – Lichtsteiner told reporters: These are my last 14 days at Juventus. I need new challenges and motivation.
I have improved in my mentality. I didn t know what it meant to play at Juventus when I arrived, as there is pressure and obsession for the victory, Lichtsteiner – who could add…
Luis Suarez is out for an indefinite period after injuring his right calf in Barcelona s LaLiga loss to Athletic Bilbao on Friday, the club have confirmed.
The 32-year-old striker had to be replaced before half-time at San Mames after receiving treatment following a shot that hit the post.
Lionel Messi missed the match with a calf issue of his own suffered shortly before Barca travelled to the United States for two friendly matches against Napoli last week.
Their absences were felt as Ernesto Valverde s men succumbed to a stunning late winner from Athletic veteran Aritz Aduriz.
Tests carried out on Saturday morning have confirmed Luis Suarez has an injured right calf, Barca said in a statement.
His recovery will dictate his return to action.
Spain fell victim to the curse of the favourites at the 2018 World Cup when they were knocked out by hosts Russia, who produced one of the biggest shocks in the tournament s history.
Following the elimination of reigning champions Germany in the group stages and defeats for Argentina and Portugal in Saturday s round of 16 matches, Spain were held to a 1-1 draw at Luzhniki Stadium on Sunday and lost 4-3 on penalties to Russia – the lowest ranked team in the World Cup – who had managed just one shot on target in 120 minutes of football.
The 2010 world champions were frustrated by Stanislav Cherchesov s resilient defence, and while the hosts progressed to the quarter-finals for the first time since 1970, the team famed for tiki-taka football and featuring players as il…
Manchester City completed the formality of qualification for the Champions League group stage with a 1-0 win over Steaua Bucharest as Joe Hart bid a probable farewell to his adoring Etihad Stadium public.
Hart was restored to the City starting XI for the first and most likely last time under Pep Guardiola, who has preferred Willy Caballero in goal during the opening weeks of the season and sanctioned a move for Claudio Bravo, with the Chile international expected to complete the formalities of his move from Barcelona before the end of this week.
City s 5-0 romp in the first leg killed both Steaua s ambition in Manchester and the game as a spectacle, with Fabian Delph s 56th-minute header one of the few notable pieces of on-field play.
It meant much of the focus c…
Marcus Rashford is determined to get Manchester United challenging for the biggest prizes again after signing a new four-year contract with the club.
The 21-year-old has extended his deal at Old Trafford until 2023, with the option for a further year, in a major boost for manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer s new era.
Rashford has been directly involved in more goals than any other United player in all competitions since his debut in February 2016, underlining his importance to the side, but his rise to prominence has been something of a rare positive for fans in the years since Alex Ferguson s retirement.
The Red Devils have won the Europa League, FA Cup and EFL Cup since 2013 but failed to mount a realistic Premier League title challenge, and their sixth-place finish …
Ivan Rakitic scored a wonderful volley and Lionel Messi struck twice to inspire Barcelona to a thrilling 4-2 win at Tottenham in the Champions League.
Philippe Coutinho took only 92 seconds to give Barca the lead at Wembley on Wednesday, with Rakitic s unstoppable 25-yarder doubling the Catalan side s first-half advantage.
Harry Kane s 10th Champions League goal gave Spurs hope and, although Messi soon put Barca 3-1 up, Erik Lamela struck to set up a grandstand finish.
Ernesto Valverde s men had failed to win their last three games and looked nervy in the closing stages, but Messi capitalised on poor defending in the last minute to ensure his team join Inter on maximum points after two games in Group B.
Hugo Lloris was playing for the first time since A…
Jamal Musiala admits being compared to Lionel Messi is a big honour as the Germany midfielder prepares for his World Cup bow.
The Bayern Munich star, who played just nine minutes at Euro 2020, has enjoyed an impressive start to the Bundesliga season, scoring nine goals and providing six assists.
The 19-year-old s 15 goal involvements are the most registered by any teenager across Europe s top five leagues and just two shy of Messi s tally for Paris Saint-Germain (seven goals, 10 assists).
I think it s a big honour to be compared to Messi, said Musiala, who will hope to feature in Germany s Group E opener against Japan at the Khalifa International Stadium on Wednesday.
He has been playing at the top level for his entire career. It s always hard to compar…
Scott Parker enjoyed a fine start to his reign as Burnley head coach as the Clarets opened their Championship campaign with an emphatic 4-1 victory over Luton Town.
Josh Brownhill’s low finish opened the scoring inside six minutes before Wilson Odobert added a second before the break.
Tahith Chong halved the deficit early in the second half and the hosts pushed for an equaliser against one of the sides they joined in being relegated from the Premier League last term.
However, Dara O Shea headed in a third to kill off any hopes of a comeback, then Vitinho s late strike added a further flourish to the scoreline.
The win takes Burnley up to second – behind Sheffield Wednesday – in the table at the conclusion of matchday one, while Luton sit 23rd, on…