Shaqiri relishes Bayern move

Former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson has warned Gareth Southgate s side of the extremely difficult task they face to break down Sweden s defence in Saturday s World Cup quarter-final.

The Three Lions are on a high after Tuesday s penalty shoot-out victory over Colombia following a 1-1 draw, which booked them a trip to Samara to face a Sweden side Eriksson rates highly for their defensive resilience and team ethic.

Janne Andersson s men have won three of their four World Cup matches so far, scoring six goals and keeping a trio of clean sheets as they topped Group F and beat Switzerland 1-0 in the last 16.

Eriksson, who managed England to 40 victories and only 10 defeats between 2001 and 2006, said his home nation would prove a stern test for his former emplo…

Southampton defenders Virgil van Dijk and Jose Fonte will not leave in the January transfer window, according to manager Claude Puel.

Van Dijk has been linked with a big-money move away from St Mary s Stadium, with Chelsea and Manchester City said to be chasing him after his impressive form since signing from Celtic in 2015.

Captain Fonte, meanwhile, has reportedly attracted the interest of Everton and Manchester United, with only has 18 months left on his Saints contract.

But Puel has reiterated he does not have any plans to sell the duo in January and is not worried that Van Dijk has become distracted by the speculation.

With Jose [the situation] is a little particular but he is contracted with Southampton, Puel said ahead of Saturday s home Premier Le…

David Neres scored a second-half winner as Juventus continued their poor start to the season with a 2-1 defeat at home to Benfica in the Champions League.

Having seen a late winner ruled out in Sunday s ill-tempered draw with Salernitana, Arkadiusz Milik took just four minutes to open the scoring, flicking past Odisseas Vlachodimos to seemingly put the hosts in control.

However, Joao Mario levelled things up with a first-half penalty and Neres volleyed in the winner after 55 minutes, putting Benfica joint-top of Group H alongside Paris Saint-Germain.

There were chances for a late equaliser, Dusan Vlahovic seeing an effort disallowed and Bremer squandering a golden opportunity to leave the pressure mounting upon Massimiliano Allegri.

3 Juventus have conc…

Bologna have completed the signing of Palermo striker Davide Succi on a six month loan deal.  The Rossoblu also have the option to sign him on a permanent basis at the end of the season for a fee of around 3 million euros. Succi, 28, was born in Bologna but started his professional career with Chievo Verona.

He had loan spells at Poggese,  Padova, SPAL, Como and Lucchese before transferring to Ravenna in 2005. In September 2008, he was signed by Palermo. His first league goal for the Rosanero was scored against Bologna.

Bologna were in the market for a striker after losing Pablo Osvaldo to Spanish club Espanyol. Apart from Succi, the Rossoblu currently have Marco Di Vaio, Marcelo Zalayeta  and young Henry Gimenez as the strikers in their lineup.

[Source:- Bol…

Barcelona received an offer for Neymar from Manchester United in the previous transfer window, according to the player s father and manager.

The Brazil captain  who remains embroiled in legal issues surrounding his transfer from Santos to Camp Nou in 2013 and Neymar Sr were apparently asked if they would be interested in a move to Old Trafford.

However, Neymar s father insisted that neither the Catalan club or player wanted the deal to go through and the offer is no longer on the table.

Barcelona received a proposal, and the club told us they were not going to sell him, Neymar Sr said on Boa Tarde Fox.

They asked if we were interested, but it was not the case. Barcelona did not sell because he has three years left on his contract.

It was…

Barcelona played their best football in two years in the first half of Tuesday s Champions League defeat to Manchester City, according to Luis Enrique.

The Spanish champions took the lead at the Etihad Stadium through Lionel Messi, but were made to pay for some sloppy mistakes as Pep Guardiola s side ultimately ran out 3-1 winners.

Errors from Sergi Roberto and goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen, combined with a general slump in their performance in the second half, prompted criticism of Barca both in England and Spain.

Luis Enrique, however, says their football early on was the finest he has seen since taking charge in 2014 and insists the detractors do not concern him.

If you look at the first 40 minutes in Manchester, I think they were the best in thi…

Jurgen Klopp has dismissed suggestions he could succeed Joachim Low as Germany head coach.

The Liverpool manager said on Tuesday that he remained committed to last season s Premier League champions.

Low announced earlier in the day that he would end his 15-year career as Germany boss after the Euro 2020 finals.

Klopp s name led the way in polls conducted in Germany to judge the public view of who should replace Low, but the 53-year-old former Borussia Dortmund coach counted himself out.

When asked whether the job may have come too soon for him in his career, Klopp said: Maybe you should ask the question differently, if I m available for the job of manager or coach of the German national team after the summer no.

Joachim Low did an incredible job…

Chelsea have been fined £25,000 by the Football Association (FA) for failing to control their players during their 1-1 Premier League draw with Liverpool.

The Blues admitted to two breaches of FA Rule E20.1 in the lively match at Anfield on August 28, both of those incidents occurring after referee Anthony Taylor sent off Reece James and awarded Liverpool a penalty in first-half stoppage time.

James was adjudged to have purposefully used his hand to block a shot on the line, with Mohamed Salah equalising from the penalty spot to cancel out a Kai Havertz opener, but the decision left Chelsea s players incensed.

Defender Antonio Rudiger and goalkeeper Edouard Mendy were booked for their protests, and the fallout continued as the players left the field after Taylor…

Barcelona have confirmed the appointment Gerardo Martino as their new manager.

The 50-year-old takes over from Tito Vilanova, who stepped down on Friday to continue his treatment for throat cancer.

Martino, who guided Newell s Old Boys to the semi-finals of the Copa Libertadores before parting company with the Argentinian side earlier this month, has agreed a two-year contract.

The former Paraguay manager s availability moved him ahead of reported candidates Luis Enrique and Ernesto Valverde, who recently signed with Celta Vigo and Athletic Bilbao respectively.

Martino, who was voted as Newell s best ever player in 2010, walked away from his role with the Rosario club on July 10 following their defeat Atletico Minero in the last four of the Libertadores.

Kn…

Nacer Chadli has claimed to have been sold on a move to Tottenham after speaking to Belgian team-mates Jan Vertonghen and Mousa Dembele.

The former FC Twente winger joined the club in July and could make his first appearance for the club against Monaco on Saturday after training with the squad on their recent tour of Hong Kong.

Chadli has made 14 appearances for Belgium and says compatriots Vertonghen and Dembele played a crucial role in convincing him to move to White Hart Lane.

They said a lot of good things about Spurs, Chadli told the club s official website.

They said ‘you have to come’. I was very happy I made the transfer. I’ve already played with them for the national team and we have good contact.

I expect a lot from myself this year and I …