Manchester rivals suffer three o´clock woe

Milan spent much of the previous decade battling Manchester United to decide which of Europe s grandest clubs could fall hardest from their perches.

Such has been their relative misery that each team was linked with bringing back a former star, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, to inject a little optimism at the start of 2020.

It was Milan who made that particular move, Ibrahimovic returning this week to much fanfare to the club he led to the 2011 Serie A title. He came on as a substitute against Sampdoria on Monday, the self-professed lion greeting the San Siro cheers with an encouraging roar of this own.

If bravado bought points, Ibrahimovic s arrival would have Milan pushing Juventus at the top of the table before the season is out. As it is, his 35 minutes on the pitch ser…

Arsenal have announced that head of football Raul Sanllehi is leaving the club.

The former Barcelona director was appointed by the Gunners in November 2017 as head of football relations before being promoted following the departure of Ivan Gazidis.

Vinai Venkatesham, our current managing director, will lead us going forward, the club said in a statement announcing Sanllehi s exit.

The decision comes amid a move to streamline Arsenal s behind-the-scenes structure, partly influenced by the financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which has seen the club announce plans to make 55 non-playing staff redundant and led to the departure of figures in the scouting department, including long-time recruitment specialist Francis Cagigao.

Owners Stan Kroenke a…

Market: Both teams to score No

Odds: 11/10 @

Two sides who are seeking a Super League boost on Wednesday night, Zurich will welcome Lausanne to the Letzigrund.

Starting with the hosts, while Zurich might have come flying out of the traps when opening up the 2023/24 campaign, the Swiss giants have drastically struggled to find a similar level. Last seen suffering a late collapse away at Grasshoppers as they slumped to a 2-1 defeat, Bo Henriksen’s men are without a win from any of their previous five Super League appearances a run that stems back to a stellar 3-1 victory against Young Boys on November 25th. Although FCZ might still be sat firmly in the driving seat to book a top-half return in 2024, the former Midtjylland boss will have a mounting headache over …

Mikel Arteta is unsure whether Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Thomas Partey will be fit for Arsenal s Premier League trip to Liverpool on Saturday.

The in-form Gunners travel to Merseyside without a win at Anfield since September 2012, but with the longest unbeaten run in the top flight of eight matches.

Captain Aubamayang has emerged as a doubt for the clash with the Reds after returning from international duty with Gabon early, while Ghana midfielder Partey s fitness is also a concern for the London club due to a muscle injury.

Asked about Aubamayang s early return, Arteta said on Friday: No, it wasn t pre-planned, we have to assess him and see how he is and make a decision.

We have a lot players who have been through some different games, issues, li…

Burnley moved eight points clear of the Premier League relegation zone with a come-from-behind 3-1 win over Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday.

Ashley Barnes atoned for an early own goal by adding to quickfire first-half strikes from Chris Wood and Ashley Westwood as Sean Dyche s men sealed a second straight victory that lifts them comfortably away from next weekend s opponents Cardiff City.

Bournemouth were clearly second best after letting their lead slip amid a frenetic opening 20 minutes and, outside of a wayward Callum Wilson header, offered little response on the way to a sixth loss in nine matches.

Asmir Begovic, recalled for last weekend s loss to Leicester City, was at fault for two Burnley goals and his team have now failed to win an…

Jay Stansfield struck either side of half-time to give 10-man Birimingham a huge 3-1 victory over fellow League One promotion hopefuls Wrexham on Monday.

A game dubbed the Hollywood derby was given a blockbuster start when Jack Marriot smashed home the opening goal for the visitors with just two minutes on the clock.

But Birmingham s £10million recruit Stansfield soon levelled the scores, being the first to react to Alfie May s effort that was parried into his path by Arthur Okonkwo.

The hosts then took hold of the encounter as May and Taylor Gardner-Hickman went close, but the game entered the break finely poised at St. Andrew s.

However, Blues dominance prevailed seven minutes after the restart with Stansfield s header picking out the far corner fol…

Kylian Mbappe stated his Paris Saint-Germain team-mates must respect themselves after an insipid performance in the 3-0 defeat at Monaco on Sunday.

Mbappe s former club dominated the first half at Stade Louis II, before expertly picking PSG off on the counter-attack in the second.

Goals from Wissam Ben Yedder (two) and Kevin Volland sealed the win, with an exasperated Mbappe seen removing his shirt and under-shirt after Monaco took a 25th-minute lead.

This made it four away defeats in a row in all competitions for Mauricio Pochettino s men, including the recent humiliation in the Champions League when the Parisians threw away a two-goal aggregate lead over Real Madrid thanks to a second-half Karim Benzema hat-trick at the Santiago Bernabeu.

20 Wissam Ben…

Cesc Fabregas said it is difficult to imagine humble Lionel Messi ending his long association with Barcelona – and claimed Cristiano Ronaldo is a inspiration for players over 30.

Fabregas will be a keen observer of Barcelona s Champions League fixture with Juventus on Tuesday, which is set to revive the longstanding rivalry between his friend Messi and Ronaldo.

Monaco midfielder Fabregas was a team-mate of Messi s during his rise through Barca s La Masia youth academy and played alongside him in the first team between 2011 and 2014.

The pair won LaLiga, the UEFA Super Cup, Club World Cup, Copa del Rey and Supercopa de Espana together during Fabregas stint with the Blaugrana.

Argentina forward Messi, 33, has been at Barca for two decades but rumours o…

Stefano Sensi s goal was the difference as Inter retained their 100 per cent record in Serie A by comfortably beating 10-man Udinese 1-0 on Alexis Sanchez s debut at San Siro.

A nine-minute spell before half-time during which Rodrigo de Paul was shown a red card for striking Antonio Candreva on the head following the intervention of VAR and Sensi nodded Inter ahead proved decisive.

Romelu Lukaku endured a disappointing outing and made way for Lautaro Martinez in the 65th minute, before Sanchez replaced Matteo Politano, the Chile forward making his first appearance for the Nerazzurri against one of his former clubs.

While Inter were unable add to their tally, they had already done enough to pick up a third straight win under Antonio Conte and move two points clea…

Everton are interested in signing Billy Gilmour from Premier League rivals Chelsea in the summer transfer window, according to . The report has claimed that the Toffees have discussed bringing the former Rangers prospect to Goodison Park on a loan deal.

Gilmour has been on the books of Chelsea since 2017 when he moved from Scottish Premiership giants Rangers. The Scotland international midfielder made a handful of appearances for Chelsea in the first team before being sent off to Norwich City on loan for last season.

The 21-year-old central midfielder did not have the best of times at Norwich, who got relegated from the Premier League at the end of last season. Gilmour made 21 starts and three substitute appearances in the Premier League for the Canaries last season, p…