Новости за 21.03.2018

Marek Hamsik has pulled out of Slovakia's squad for the King's Cup after having his tonsils removed. The Napoli captain had been due to feature in his country's opening game against the United Arab Emirates on Thursday at the Rajamangala Stadium in Bangkok, but will now stay in Italy to recover. The 30-year-old missed a handful of training sessions in January with tonsillitis and a decision was made on Wednesday to undergo a small operation to remove his tonsils. "Marek Hamsik was operated on... Читать дальше...

Antoine Griezmann says Paul Pogba is in high spirits and has backed the Manchester United midfielder to prove his doubters wrong during France's friendly matches. A combination of poor form, injury and illness has meant Pogba has started only four of United's last 11 matches in all competitions, while speculation has persisted over a rumoured breakdown in his relationship with manager Jose Mourinho. France boss Didier Deschamps conceded this week that the 25-year-old "can't be happy" with the way life is going at Old Trafford. Читать дальше...

Alexis Sanchez believes an "abrupt" move from Arsenal to Manchester United has contributed to his slow start to life at Old Trafford. Sanchez has scored a single goal since switching from Arsenal during the January transfer window, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan moving the other way. Jose Mourinho has acknowledged it was not the ideal time to sign Sanchez, who had been linked with Manchester City and was set to become a free agent at the end of the season. And Sanchez - an unused substitute for the FA... Читать дальше...

Javi Martinez has not been told why he was left out of Spain's latest squad by head coach Julen Lopetegui. Bayern Munich defender Martinez was among the notable absentees from the squad for international friendlies against Germany and Argentina on March 23 and 27 respectively, along with Chelsea duo Alvaro Morata and Cesc Fabregas. The World Cup is three months away but Martinez - part of the group that won the 2010 World Cup and 2012 European Championship - confirmed he has not been contacted by Lopetegui regarding his surprise omission. Читать дальше...

Ivan Savvidi has had a strange couple of weeks. The Georgia-born Greek businessman with a controlling interest in Superleague side PAOK became notorious 10 days ago when he entered the field of play - armed - to protest a disallowed goal.Yes, him.Anyway, late March is going rather better for Savvidi - whose actions have subsequently caused the suspension of the Greek domestic league - and he has recently become a billionaire.Alongside his footballing interests, he also owned Donskoy Tabak, a cigarette... Читать дальше...

Ryan Giggs admits he is nervous for the first time in his illustrious career as he prepares for his managerial debut with Wales. The Manchester United legend won the Premier League title 13 times, as well as lifting the Champions League trophy twice, during over two decades of service to the club as a player. Yet despite all he achieved on the field, Giggs - who picked up 64 caps for his country - is apprehensive ahead of Thursday's fixture against China in Nanning. The 44-year-old was on the coaching staff at United... Читать дальше...

Juventus have diagnosed Alex Sandro with a thigh injury following the defender's withdrawal from international duty with Brazil. The left-back pulled out of the Selecao's training camp ahead of games against Russia and Germany and Juve confirmed tests conducted upon his return had found a thigh problem. "After having returned from the Brazilian national team training camp, Alex Sandro was given further medical examinations, which confirmed the extent of the injury," the club said in a statement. Читать дальше...

Heading into the second-leg of their Paulista A1 state championship quarter-final, amateur side Sao Caetano held a 1-0 lead on aggregate over Serie A giants Sao Paulo.But unfortunately for the minnows– who were actually Copa Libertadores finalists in 2002 before sliding miserably out of the league altogether–goalkeeper Paes handed that advantage back in the second half of the return game with this awful moment.The 35-year-old goalkeeper dallied under pressure from Santiago Trellez having collected a routine backpass... Читать дальше...

Joe Hart says England boss Gareth Southgate "seems like a loyal guy" but admits the number one shirt is up for grabs approaching the World Cup. Hart is one of four goalkeepers in the Three Lions squad for the friendlies against the Netherlands and Italy over the next week but, arguably, is the man most at risk of missing out on a place in Russia after a poor season for West Ham. The 30-year-old, on loan from Manchester City, started his first league game in over three months in the Hammers' last... Читать дальше...

Nostalgia ain’t what it used to be. The word was coined in 1668 as a medical diagnosis, combining the Greek nostos (homecoming) and algos (ache or pain: see also neuralgia, ‘nerve-pain’). The neologiser was scholar Johannes Hofer, describing the homesickness of far-flung Swiss soldiers pining for the Alps.Since then nostalgia has gone from being a treatable condition to a heritage industry, a lucrative revisiting not of place but time: “Remember when this happened?”. Sufferers are indulged but also mocked for living in the past... Читать дальше...

Bernardo Silva believes he can get even better at Manchester City after taking time to settle into life with the Premier League leaders. The Portugal international swapped Monaco for Manchester last May, becoming a member of Pep Guardiola's much-changed squad after City paid a reported fee of £43million to secure the attacking midfielder. Silva was delayed in joining up with his new team-mates due to his involvement in the Confederations Cup, yet his influence has grown as the season has progressed. Читать дальше...

Brazil great Ronaldo believes compatriot Neymar will be back from injury in time to lead a "very strong team" at the 2018 World Cup. The South American nation were last crowned world champions in 2002, when Ronaldo scored both goals in a 2-0 final win over Germany. Selecao hopes are high ahead of this year's tournament in Russia, with Brazil losing just once during qualifying to finish top of the CONMEBOL section. However, much will depend on the health of Neymar, with the Paris Saint-Germain... Читать дальше...

Diego Costa says Antoine Griezmann helped convince him to return to Atletico Madrid and now he hopes the France star will stay with him at the club. Griezmann decided against a move away from the Liga side last year due to a FIFA-imposed ban on Atleti signing new players. The 27-year-old is once more being linked with Barcelona and Manchester United, and acknowledged in an interview with L'Equipe that he wants his future to be resolved before the World Cup begins in June. Costa rejoined Atletico from Chelsea last year... Читать дальше...

German second divisionside Sandhausen didn't have the best weekend: they raced into a two-goal lead against Bochum, who are a couple of places below and threatened by relegation, but then fell apart to lose 3-2.Nevertheless, this goal from Manuel Stiefler was worth the entrance money alone.It's not quite Olivier Giroud, but there's no such thing as a bad scorpion kick right? Right.Stiefler made it 1-0 in that game, Rurik Gislarson added a second, but then a Lukas Hinterseer hat-trick was enough for Bochum to steal the points.Incidentally... Читать дальше...

Former England striker Les Ferdinand fears a lack of depth in attack could prove costly to Gareth Southgate's side at the World Cup. With Tottenham star Harry Kane sidelined due to an ankle injury, Jamie Vardy, Danny Welbeck and Marcus Rashford are the only dedicated forwards in the squad for this month's friendlies with Netherlands and Italy. Ferdinand expects Kane and Vardy to be the obvious candidates to start when England begin their campaign in Russia against Tunisia on June 18, while he hopes... Читать дальше...

1. Dixie Dean, 1927/28 (17 goals in nine games)The entire 1927/28 campaign was one long purple patch for Everton’s Dixie Dean, who netted an astonishing 60 goals in 39 league appearances for the Toffees. His best spell came when he netted 17 goals in Everton’s opening nine fixtures, a tally that made him responsible for 65% of his team’s strikes up to that point.Everton ended the year as First Division champions and, almost 90 years on, no one in the English game has matched Dean’s extraordinary record in a single league season. Читать дальше...

Reading have announced the departure of manager Jaap Stam after a wretched run of results in the Championship. The former Manchester United and Netherlands defender took the Royals to the play-off final last season but poor results in 2017-18 have seen them slip to 20th in the table, three points above the relegation zone. After a run of just one win in 18 league games, Reading say a change of manager is necessary to help steer them clear of the drop. "Reading Football Club announce that Jaap... Читать дальше...

Marco Asensio would not be against Neymar joining Real Madrid because he has proven at Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain that he is a "great player". Neymar joined PSG in August in a transfer that rocked football, leaving Barcelona for a world-record deal which cost the Ligue 1 side €222million. He has starred consistently in France, scoring 19 goals and setting up another 13 in just 20 Ligue 1 appearances. But there have been regular suggestions of discontent, with Neymar already said to be eyeing a move... Читать дальше...

Important note: These are the last 20 official England captains as recognised by the FA. Apparently that thing where the captain is subbed off in a friendly so he passes the armband to someone else (who gets subbed five minutes later so he gives it to a random ball boy) doesn't count.Interestingly, the list doesn’t include the England manager Gareth Southgate, as he’s one of those who’s worn the armband but never began a match as skipper.Yet these 20 lionhearts all lived the schoolboy dream of pulling... Читать дальше...

Jose Mourinho has frequently taken aim at the Old Trafford crowd during his time as Manchester United manager (as he liked to do during his Chelsea days too), buthe might just have a point: it is a very quiet ground these days, and its atmosphere has probably been lessened by the growth of football tourism.According to The Times, among the responses considered by the club is the creation of song sheets containing the words to all the most popular chants, which would then be distributed to fans on... Читать дальше...

This is brutal.The own goal is bad enough, of course - it's the classic overhit backpass, mixed with the goalkeeper's strange "should I, shouldn't I" attempt to stop the ball with his hand and then a mad, futile dash back towards his own goal.However, it's worse when you know that this happened within three minutes of the game starting and that the poor goalkeeper was actually a trialist. He won't be thankingJaakko Oksanen after this...Early drama at Griffin Park as #MUFC are handed the lead!Watch the game live on #MUTV... Читать дальше...

Bixente Lizarazu has just only arrived at FourFourTwo HQ, but already he is causing mayhem. First, he frantically rips up some magazines, then puts us in a disconcertingly sturdy headlock.Normally, this would be a sign that the interview’s gone badly wrong– but with Lizarazu it’s different.“I’m not a psychopath!” chuckles the World Cup winner, who’s in London as part of his role as an ambassador with Bayern Munich.To be fair, we did ask the jiu-jitsu black belt to tear up an old issue or two for the photoshoot. Читать дальше...

“I cannot compare the way he trains and commits, the focus, the ambition. He is a long way behind.”So said Jose Mourinho a year ago, contrasting a then-21-year-old Luke Shaw with some of his Manchester United team-mates.Things only seem to have deteriorated between in the 12 months since, and Mourinho has continued to criticise his beleaguered left-back. Yet for all the titles and trophies the Portuguesewon at Porto, Chelsea, Inter and Real Madrid, plenty of his playing staff have found themselves in the crosshairof the self-styled “happy one”.

Highly-rated Bordeaux attacker Malcom believes the time has come to leave the Ligue 1 side and is eager to realise his "dream" of playing for a club like Bayern Munich. Malcom has been with Bordeaux since leaving Corinthians in January 2016, becoming one of the standout players in Ligue 1 despite still being just 21. Arsenal and Tottenham have been linked as suitors, with the Gunners initially emerging as favourites for his signature in January when Alexis Sanchez secured a move to Manchester United. Читать дальше...

Marco Asensio dismissed suggestions Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane was unfair for dropping him from the European champions' starting XI. Asensio has established himself as one of Europe's most promising midfielders since joining Madrid from Mallorca in 2014. After an impressive loan spell with Espanyol, Asensio became a regular in Madrid's squad last term and has seen his involvement further increased this season. The 22-year-old was particularly impressive in the first half of the campaign and started nine LaLiga games before Christmas... Читать дальше...