Martinez to miss end of Bayern Munich´s season after fracturing collarbone

Gabriel Jesus netted a hat-trick as Manchester City powered to a 6-0 Champions League victory over Shakhtar Donetsk but they will have to wait to book their place in the last 16 after Hoffenheim netted a late equaliser at Lyon in Group F s other fixture.

The hosts were in total control as they eased to a comfortable win at the Etihad Stadium, giving City brief respite from the series of allegations about their financial conduct that have been published by German magazine Der Spiegel this week, upon which the club have declined to comment.

With the focus firmly back on on-field matters, City put on an efficient display that opened with a straightforward finish for David Silva, before Raheem Sterling was wrongly awarded a spot-kick after kicking the turf.

Jesus…

The Premier League riches of Manchester United, Chelsea and others makes it hard for Liverpool to win silverware, according to former manager Rafael Benitez.

Benitez will reunite with Liverpool when the Merseyside outfit visit his Newcastle United at St James Park on Sunday.

The Spaniard enjoyed success during his six-year tenure at Anfield, guiding Liverpool to Champions League glory, while they narrowly missed out on the Premier League title in 2008-09 – finishing second to United.

Jurgen Klopp s Liverpool are among the contenders for this season s crown in their quest to end a 28-year drought but Benitez doubts the club s chances, believing the Reds need a miracle like Leicester City in 2015-16.

When I arrived at Liverpool, the budget was £20m gros…

Tottenham Hotspur have reached a full agreement with Everton over the proposed transfer of Richarlison, according to multiple reports. The guaranteed part of the fee is set at £50 million, with £10m more to come in the form of add-ons should certain conditions be fulfilled in the future. The Brazilian is thus on course to become the most expensive signing ever for the North Londoners, overtaking the transfer of Tanguy Ndombele from Olympique Lyon in 2019.

Primarily a central attacker, Richarlison is capable of playing on either flank as well, a trait that will surely come in handy with England captain Harry Kane the indisputable first choice when it comes to leading the line upfront. Since joining Everton from Watford in 2018 for around £35m, the 36-cap Brazil international …

The dancing feet of Bukayo Saka, the coming of age of Eddie Nketiah, the groans from Manchester red and blue. If this is to be Arsenal s season, then this was a day they ll not forget in a hurry.

A 90th-minute winner from Nketiah, his second goal of the game, settled a modern classic in this great rivalry. Manchester United gave so much to the game, but Arsenal were outstanding and truly worthy winners. It was 3-2 in the end, and the roars of Eddie, Eddie were music to the ears of Nketiah and his manager, Mikel Arteta.

What spirit it was that carried the home players. Feeding off a crowd that believes in them, that senses a championship is incoming, the end of a 19-year wait, Arsenal never stopped driving forward, and finally United cracked.

With a 3-1 win at Old…

Former Napoli midfielder Antonio Juliano has died at the age of 80, the Serie A side have announced.

Juliano made more than 500 appearances in all competitions for the Partenopei from 1962 to 1978, helping the club win the Coppa delle Alpi, the Coppa Italia and the Anglo-Italian League Cup.

He retired in 1979 after a season with Bologna and returned to Napoli as sporting director, a role in which he played a key part in the signing of Diego Maradona in 1984.

Today is one of the saddest days in Napoli s history and for our supporters. Antonio Juliano, who was Mr Napoli for two decades, has passed away.If you are not familiar with him, it is worth finding out more about him and what he represented in our city.Rest in peace, Totonno.

— Official SSC Napoli…

Best odds: 7/10

Bookmaker:

In one of the most intriguing Premier League matches this weekend, Newcastle will be playing host to Liverpool at St. James Park on Saturday afternoon. It ll be the 23rd game of the campaign for the home team, 22nd for the visitors, and both have a big point to prove.

Newcastle

Since their change of ownership, concluded in October, 2021, Newcastle have been gradually building a formidable squad, not spending too much money at once, but hitting the mark with every signing so far. It was not that long ago when they were desperately fighting for survival in the English top flight; now they re aiming to qualify for the Champions League, and the feeling is that they might start shooting for the title very soon.

At the moment, the M…

Inter secured their place in next season s Champions League and condemned Empoli to relegation as Radja Nainggolan s late goal sealed a 2-1 win in a dramatic game on the final day of the Serie A season.

Luciano Spalletti – whose position continues to be the subject of intense scrutiny – said earlier in the week that he wanted his players to treat the game as a cup final and they duly responded in the early stages, with only the brilliance of Empoli goalkeeper Bartlomiej Dragowski preventing them from putting the game to bed before half-time.

Keita Balde Diao s introduction at the interval proved a masterstroke as the 24-year-old superbly whipped past Dragowski from outside the penalty area to open the scoring. 

Empoli took full advantage of Mauro Icardi s pe…

Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo renew world football s greatest individual battle when they meet in Saturday s much-anticipated Clasico.

Barcelona have the benefit of a healthy lead in LaLiga and know a win at the Santiago Bernabeu would be a major blow to Real Madrid s title hopes.

The potentially decisive clash could boil down to which of the sides superstars takes control.

Using Opta data, we analyse which player has enjoyed El Clasico most across their stellar careers.

— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano)

MESSI THE MASTER

Even a finely-tuned goal machine like Ronaldo cannot match Messi s scoring supremacy when it comes to this fixture. 

The agile Argentinian is the most prolific player in Clasico his…

Manchester United and Chelsea are ready to battle for the services of Arsenal midfielder Aaron Ramsey, according to the Express.

The Wales international is set to leave the Emirates Stadium once his contract expires at the end of the season after over ten years in North London.

AC Milan, Juventus and Valencia are also interested in the twenty-seven-year-old though he could well join up with one of the Gunners’ top six rivals.

Since signing from Cardiff in the summer of 2008 Ramsey has racked up three-hundred and forty appearances in all competitions, scoring fifty-nine goals – including the winner in the 2014 FA Cup final victory over Hull City.

He was also part of the squads that won the Cup in 2015 and 2017 and was named the club’s Player of …

According to a recent report from Sky Sports Italia, Christian Eriksen is ready to get down to the nitty gritty details of his personal terms ahead of a potential move to Inter Milan later on this week. The belief is that he will be leaving North London for a fee of around €16 million, which many will probably see as a bargain given the potential that he has shown across his many years with Tottenham Hotspur. 

Inter have made it clear that Eriksen is one of their primary targets, especially after it became clear that Real Madrid wouldn’t be pursuing him in the same manner as they have been doing across the last few years. 

Eriksen’s future with Spurs has looked questionable for longer than most of us can remember, and now, it finally looks like we’re getting c…