Germany coach Joachim Low believes Bayern Munich will give themselves a very good solution should they re-hire Jupp Heynckes as Carlo Ancelotti s successor until the end of the season.
Heynckes is expected to be appointed as Bayern coach for a fourth time this week after Ancelotti was sacked at the end of September following a 3-0 Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain.
Ancelotti was reported to have lost the support of several key members of the Bayern dressing room before his dismissal, with speculation suggesting his training methods left a lot to be desired.
Heynckes confirmed on Thursday that Bayern have approached him and that he was considering their offer.
Should he accept, Low believes Bayern have made a good choice.
Speaking afte…
It seems to me he s been a great striker, Batistuta said of Higuain, who is on loan at Chelsea from Juventus. Respected all over the world. And treated in a bad way in Argentina.
We were talking about the fact that strikers maybe miss 200 goals, but then make one, two or three goals in the right moments, and so they are always remembered for those few ones they scored, compared to the ones they failed.
And I said: there s also the opposite . Higuain scored 200 goals, and missed three at the wrong time; and in Argentina, unfortunately, he is remembered for that.
When he is, instead, a great striker, one of the best we ve seen in the last years on a global scale.
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Diego Simeone shouldered the blame for Atletico Madrid s Copa del Rey elimination at the hands of Sevilla in the quarter-finals on Tuesday.
Atletico shipped two late goals to lose the first leg 2-1 and conceded within 24 seconds of the return before going down to a 3-1 defeat, with Simeone sent from the sidelines after Pablo Sarabia scored Sevilla s third at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan.
Atleti slipped 11 points behind LaLiga leaders Barcelona following a 1-1 draw with Girona on Saturday and will not feature in the Champions League knockout stages having finished third in Group C behind Roma and Chelsea.
However, the Argentinian backed his team to continue fighting in LaLiga and the Europa League having fallen out of two cup competitions already this season.
Jurgen Klopp was delighted by confirmation of a new long-term contract for Diogo Jota at Liverpool, where the forward now plans to play his prime years.
Liverpool announced Jota s extension on Tuesday, with his new deal reportedly set to expire in 2027.
After Mohamed Salah similarly agreed fresh terms and Darwin Nunez was bought from Benfica, Liverpool head into the new Premier League season with a strong attacking line-up despite the departure of Sadio Mane.
Only Salah (60) and Mane (39) have scored more goals for Liverpool than Jota (34) since he joined the club in 2020, with the same two players also leading the way in goal involvements (82 for Salah, 49 for Mane, 41 for Jota).
Averaging a goal every 157 minutes in all competitions, Jota outperformed …
Paulo Dybala scored a brace as Juventus went top of Serie A with a routine 2-0 home win against Udinese on Sunday.
With leaders Napoli in action later in the day against Inter, Massimiliano Allegri s men only needed a draw to claim top spot, even if only temporarily.
Dybala s double secured an 11th straight Serie A win as Juve seek a seventh consecutive title, with the champions now in ominous form, having kept eight successive clean sheets in the league.
Juve s latest victory was rarely in doubt at the Allianz Stadium after Dybala gave the Bianconeri the lead with his eighth free-kick goal for the club, a superb curling effort that gave Albano Bizzarri no chance.
Bizzarri denied Gonzalo Higuain from the penalty spot after Dybala was fouled, but the …
Diego Costa and Lucas Hernandez were injured as Atletico Madrid booked a place in the semi-finals of the Europa League.
Lucas was replaced at half-time after suffering what Atletico described as a strong facial trauma in a 1-0 defeat away to Sporting CP, Diego Simeone s men heading through 2-1 on aggregate.
Costa followed shortly after the restart after the striker appeared to sustain an injury to his left leg, but 2010 and 2012 winners Atletico were able to cling on.
Injuries to Costa and Lucas come as a blow to Simeone, who saw his squad options reduced by the sales of Nicolas Gaitan, Augusto Fernandez and Yannick Carrasco who all moved to the Chinese Super League during the January transfer window.
46 | 1-0 | Atleti sub is taken off after suffering…
Diego Maradona would love to see former Argentina international and Boca Juniors great Juan Roman Riquelme back at the club.
Riquelme, 38, retired in January 2015 after 51 appearances for the national team and having starred for Boca, Barcelona and Villarreal throughout his career.
However, Argentina great Maradona said Boca – eliminated in the Copa Libertadores semi-finals – should consider making a move for the talented attacking midfielder.
If I had money, I would ask Riquelme to return, Maradona said in an interview with Fox Sports.
Riquelme was a four-time Argentine Footballer of the Year, while he won Olympic gold in 2008.
He won numerous league titles with Boca, as well as three Copa Libertadores crowns.
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New Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has set his sights on winning the Premier League but concedes it is going to be a mountain to climb .
Solskjaer was appointed on a three-year deal by United on Thursday following a successful spell in charge on an interim basis after Jose Mourinho s dismissal in December.
The Norwegian, who left Molde to return to the club he played for 366 times, won his first eight games in all competitions before inspiring an injury-hit United to the Champions League quarter-finals with a comeback win against Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain.
United have not won the Premier League title since Alex Ferguson s final season in charge in 2013, but Solskjaer says he has every intention of returning the Red Devils to the top of …
Former England captain Ray Wilkins has died aged 61, it has been confirmed by his family.
It had been reported that Wilkins, who played for clubs including Chelsea, Manchester United and AC Milan, was critically ill following a heart attack.
A statement released by his family via St George s Hospital in London, where he was treated, confirmed his passing on Wednesday.
It is with great sadness we announce that Raymond Colin Wilkins passed away this morning, the statement said.
We would like to thank St George s staff for the amazing work they have done to care for our beloved Ray.
We would also like to say thank you for the many goodwill messages we have received from Ray s friends, colleagues, and members of the public.
Ray leave…
Earning a Spain recall would be a dream come true for David Villa, but the New York City captain insists he is solely focused on the MLS play-offs.
Spain s all-time leading goalscorer Villa has not featured for the national team since the 2014 World Cup in Brazil but the 34-year-old has caught the attention of head coach Julen Lopetegui.
Lopetegui revealed Villa who has 97 caps to his name could return to the international fold for next month s World Cup qualifier against Macedonia having scored 23 goals in 33 league games this season, but the former Atletico Madrid and Barcelona star is not looking beyond Sunday s Eastern Conference semi-final first-leg showdown against Toronto FC.
Now, one day before the most important game, I m not thinking about this, Villa …