Gavi to match Pele with start against Morocco

Manuel Neuer has been named Germany captain following Bastian Schweinsteiger s retirement from international duty.

The Bayern Munich goalkeeper assumes the armband with immediate effect, his first game leading the national team set to be Germany s opening match of World Cup qualifying against Norway on Sunday.

Schweinsteiger s illustrious international career came to an end on Wednesday as Germany beat Finland 2-0 in Monchengladbach, the midfielder winning his 121st and final cap.

The 32-year-old took over the captaincy when Philipp Lahm retired following the 2014 World Cup, but he announced his intention to step away from the international game after Germany were eliminated from Euro 2016.

An emotional Schweinsteiger played 68 minutes in his farewell and…

Roberto Soldado continued his impressive start to life at Villarreal by inspiring a come-from-behind 3-1 victory over Espanyol on Friday.

Having flopped at Tottenham following a big-money 2013 move from Valencia, Soldado returned to La Liga earlier this month, penning a three-year deal with Villarreal.

And after scoring on debut against Real Betis last time out, the striker was again on target to cancel out an early strike from Felipe Caicedo at El Madrigal, before setting up two late goals for substitute Cedric Bakambu.

Espanyol s fifth-minute opener owed much to a former Villarreal player, Gerard Moreno putting Caicedo through on goal with a delightful throughball, played with the outside of his right boot.

Caicedo rounded goalkeeper Alphonse Areola…

Cristiano Ronaldo was named only as a substitute for Juventus opening Serie A match against Udinese amid renewed speculation he wants to leave the club.

Speaking ahead of his side s opening league game of 2021-22, head coach Massimiliano Allegri insisted Ronaldo had told him he wanted to stay in Turin.

Those comments came after the Portugal star posted to social media to hit out at what he described as frivolous rumours around his future.

However, on Sunday, Allegri selected Paulo Dybala and Alvaro Morata as a strike partnership, with Ronaldo on the bench.

Sky Sport Italia then reported that Ronaldo had requested to be left out of the first XI as he is attempting to secure a transfer before the window closes.

Ronaldo has been linked with a return …

Jean-Clair Todibo has signed for Schalke on loan from Barcelona, with the Bundesliga club having the option to make the move permanent at the end of the season.

Barca signed centre-back Todibo from Toulouse in January 2019, but the Frenchman has played just four times in LaLiga.

He will now spend the rest of 2019-20 on loan at Schalke, who have paid Barca a €1.5million loan fee and will cover Todibo s wages for the remainder of the campaign.

Schalke will also be able to make the deal permanent should Todibo impress, with Barca confirming a fee of €25m – plus €5m add-ons – has been agreed. 

Bienvenue chez les Bleus-Rois, !   

— FC Schalke 04 (@s04_en)

Should Schalke decide to sign Todibo, Barca – who on Monday replaced h…

Bruno Fernandes has a question mark over his fitness, Erik ten Hag said ahead of Manchester United s Premier League clash with Tottenham.

The midfielder was forced off during United s FA Cup semi-final win over Brighton and Hove Albion on Sunday with an ankle injury and was later pictured in a protective boot.

With Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane already sidelined in a blow to United s defence, the loss of Fernandes would hurt Ten Hag s side going forward.

But on the eve of the trip to Spurs, the manager could not confirm whether Fernandes would be available.

But the Dutchman is not ready to reveal whether the midfielder will sit out their crucial encounter with Spurs or if he could yet be available to feature.

There are some unavailable, he…

Napoli s Serie A clash with Salernitana this weekend has been rescheduled by one day due to public security concerns, it has been confirmed.

The Partenopei had been set to play on Saturday, but will now take to the pitch at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on Sunday instead.

The move comes with Luciano Spalletti s side poised to win the Scudetto if Lazio fail to beat Inter at San Siro during an earlier kick-off the same day.

Serie A s decision to postpone the fixture, however, has forced a further reshuffle for Napoli s fixture list, with their game against Udinese affected.

Originally due to take place on Tuesday, the game will now be played two days later on Thursday, in what could be their first game as champions.

It also means Udinese have suffer…

French midfielder Yann M Vila is expected to join Russian giants Dynamo Moscow in the coming days, .

The 24-year-old has had his loan stint with Inter Milan terminated after he failed to play himself into the first team plans of coach Roberto Mancini.

And rather than returning to Rubin Kazan, M Vila is set to join Dynamo Moscow on loan until the end of the season.

The Russian giants currently sit two points behind Champions League positions, but with a game in hand, and they could also join the title chase.

Their star-studded squad includes players like Mathieu Valbuena, Kevin Kuranyi, Igor Denisov and Balazs Dzsudzsak, with Yann M Vila also expected to join their ranks.

The highly rated footballer featured in 24 league matches for Rubin Kazan be…

FIFA has fined the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) 220,000 Swiss francs (€203,000) for allowing Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid to breach rules relating to the registration of international players under the age of 18.

The Madrid clubs will serve player registration bans during both 2017 transfer windows after appeals against sanctions imposed for multiple rule breaches by FIFA s Disciplinary Committee were rejected last month.

Madrid and Atleti are taking their cases to the Court of Arbitration for Sport but FIFA has now seen fit to punish their national governing body for its part in the violations, with the RFEF also given a six-month deadline to bring its regulatory framework in line with present global norms.

A statement from FIFA read: The RFEF…

Valencia want to return to Champions League football next season too, despite their thrashing at San Siro (4-1) at the hands of Atalanta in round of 16 first leg. But that will not be an easy achievement, as Getafe and Atletico Madrid are in front of them and Sevilla are also trying to get into one of those places. But if they do manage it, then their next transfer target will be more eager to join them.

According to Calciomercato, Valencia are interested in signing Marseille winger Florian Thauvin! The 27-year-old s current contract at Stade Velodrome is due to expire after the 2020-21 season. That means he will have only 12 months left on his contract once this season ends, meaning he could be available for a cut-price fee.

However, a risky part of the deal is that T…

With all eyes from across Europe falling on the Spanish capital on Sunday night, Real Madrid picked up local bragging rights as they landed a 2-1 victory at the Metropolitano Stadium.

Looking to lay down a real marker against their bitter rivals here, the defending Spanish champions also piled more pressure onto an Atletico Madrid side who have endured a nightmare week.

While Mario Hermoso might have pulled back a late consolation strike for Sunday s hosts, a first-half double from Rodrygo and Federico Valverde helped Los Blancos extend on their remarkable start to the 2022/23 campaign.

Once again leapfrogging Barcelona and entering September s international break at the top of the table, we have taken a look at the main talking points following a heavyweight sh…