Luciano Spalletti raged at suggestions a pact with his players resulted in Italy s switch to a 3-5-2 formation for Monday s draw with Croatia, as they scraped into the last 16 at Euro 2024.
Following a 2-1 win over Albania and a deserved 1-0 defeat to Spain, the defending champions entered their final match in Group B with their fate in the balance.
Luka Modric s goal – which made him the oldest goalscorer in Euros history at 38 years and 289 days – put them on the brink of a third-place finish, which would have left them waiting nervously on other results to discover whether they had qualified.
However, Mattia Zaccagni stepped off the bench to curl home a brilliant equaliser after 97 minutes and 19 seconds, the second-latest goal in Euros history (excluding…
Jurgen Klopp says Liverpool s fond memories of travelling to Porto will count for nothing when the two sides meet at Estadio do Dragao on Tuesday.
The Reds cruised to a 4-1 victory in their last trip to Porto almost two and a half years ago, having thrashed them 5-0 in their previous visit in February 2018 Sadio Mane scoring a hat-trick.
Liverpool head into their second Champions League match of the season top of Group B after beating Milan 3-2 in a thriller at Anfield.
Porto held Atletico Madrid to a goalless draw and Sergio Conceicao s side are unbeaten since losing the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final to eventual winners Chelsea in April.
Klopp, who will welcome Naby Keita back from a foot injury, dismissed the suggestion the Reds pa…
Scottish icon Kenny Dalglish believes you are off your head if you think the country can do better than manager Gordon Strachan.
Strachan is facing an uncertain future after Scotland s hopes of qualifying for Euro 2016 were dramatically dashed in the closing seconds on Thursday as Poland salvaged a last-gasp 2-2 draw.
The 58-year-old, who replaced Craig Levein in 2013, comes out of contract at the end of the qualifying campaign but Dalglish is adamant Strachan is the right man for the job moving forward.
I think you are off your head if you think you are going to get anybody better, said Dalglish, who earned 102 caps for Scotland between 1971 and 1986.
It s always the manager that gets it, isn t it? But why change the manager if you can t get a better o…
Luis Enrique says Paris St Germain face a tougher task on their Ligue 1 return against Strasbourg than they will playing AC Milan in the Champions League four days later.
PSG return to action after the international break on Saturday behind top two Monaco and Nice, and with former France midfielder Patrick Vieira in the Strasbourg dug out at the Parc des Princes.
“As a player, I experienced it for years when I played for Real Madrid and Barcelona, then I experienced it as a coach at Barça and now at Paris St Germain,” head coach Enrique said ahead of side’s contest with 11th-placed Strasbourg.
Luis Enrique: It would be a mistake to think that the match will be easy
— Paris Saint-Germain (@PSG_English)
“When players are in the nationa…
Dani Alves says Barcelona do not care about the people who made history for the club following his release by the LaLiga giants last month.
The Brazil international returned to Camp Nou last November and made 17 appearances after being officially registered in January, but his short-term contract was not renewed.
Alves spent eight years with Barca in his previous spell in Catalonia and won 23 trophies in arguably the most successful period in the club s decorated history.
During that past stint, the 377 chances created by Alves were bettered by only five others from Europe s top five leagues, two of them being Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
While grateful to have had the chance to return, the veteran full-back is upset at the manner of his latest exi…
Comeback kings Watford handed Arsenal a first defeat in eight matches as Marco Silva s men recovered from a one-goal deficit to snatch a dramatic 2-1 triumph at Vicarage Road on Saturday.
Per Mertesacker marked his first Premier League start in 532 days with the opening goal, the defender converting Granit Xhaka s corner in the 39th minute, to put Arsene Wenger s side on course for a fifth successive win in all competitions.
However, Watford who had scored late goals to pick up points away at Swansea City and West Brom in their last two outings once again demonstrated their new-found resiliency under manager Silva.
A 71st-minute equaliser from the penalty spot by substitute Troy Deeney got the hosts on level terms and set up a thrilling finish.
Afte…
Former England international Phil Neville has started in his role as Valencia assistant manager
Former Manchester United and Everton ace Phil Neville started work as the new assistant boss at La Liga giants Valencia yesterday.
To say it was a surprise move for Neville would be an understatement, but the move will definitely be a challenge for the former England international.
Trend
The 38-year-old is bucking the trend of Englishmen scared to move out of their comfort zone of the Premier League. Very few high-profile English coaches have moved abroad in recent years, with the exception of current Derby boss Paul Clement, who was assistant manager at both PSG and Real Madrid before joining the Rams earlier this summer.
However, Clement was the exce…
Burnely were 2-1 down at Bournemouth on Saturday when Jay Rodriguez appeared to have scored an 89th-minute equalizer for his team. However, the linesman s flag was raised for offside and the VAR confirmed the decision after a review that lasted almost five minutes.
Speaking to the press, Burnley manager Vincent Kompany said he didn t understand what had happened there.
I just don t understand what happened
Burnley manager Vincent Kompany left confused after a dramatic late VAR decision meant his team were beaten 2-1 against Bournemouth
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews)
…
Serie A outfit Palermo are weighing up a move for former Juventus attacker Raffaele Palladino, according to Radio Sportiva.
The Rosanero lack quality options up front after summer recruit Uros Djurdjevic suffered a serious injury and they are forced to explore the free agent market.
Radio Sportiva has learned that Palermo are now looking at former Italy international Raffaele Palladino.
The 31-year-old has been looking for a new club since leaving Parma earlier this summer and he definitely looks like a good option given that he boasts huge Serie A experience.
Palladino made a name for himself at Juventus, where he scored 10 goals in 51 league outings before moving to Genoa.
The player s progress was halted by a succession of difficult injuries, …
Nicolo Barella and Romelu Lukaku scored as Inter earned a 2-0 victory at Benfica in their Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday.
In a tense affair at the Estadio da Luz, both teams found it hard to create opportunities, though the hosts shaded the first half as they pressed to get their noses in front on home soil.
But a rare moment of attacking quality from Barella put Inter ahead, before substitute Lukaku scored from the spot to clinch the win for the Serie A side.
Simone Inzaghi s men are now very much in control heading into the second leg, set to be played at San Siro next Wednesday.
1 Nicolò has scored his first headed goal with Inter in all comps. He has also netted 7 goals in 2022/23 in all comps, a record for him in terms of goals…