Siem de Jong s injury nightmare continues after Newcastle United confirmed the Dutchman has suffered a collapsed lung.
Injury-plagued Newcastle United forward Siem de Jong is set for another two months on the sidelines after undergoing surgery on a collapsed lung.
Former Ajax captain De Jong has made just two Premier League appearances for Newcastle since arriving at St James Park last July.
The 26-year-old has not played since August due to a persistent thigh injury, and his frustrating season has now taken another turn for the worse, with Newcastle announcing on Tuesday that he will miss another eight weeks with a collapsed lung an issue he also suffered with in 2013.
After four months of hard work getting back to full fitness it is such bad luck to su…
Brazil s image has benefited from hosting the FIFA World Cup, according to the country s minister for strategic affairs Marcelo Neri.
Some in Brazil felt the money spent on hosting the finals would have been put to better use improving the country s infrastructure, with isolated protests against the government breaking out in the build-up to the tournament.
Demonstrations continued during the first couple of days of the finals, but there has been little sign of any unrest as the showpiece has progressed, with the exciting action on the pitch taking centre stage.
And with Rio de Janeiro where Sunday s World Cup final will be held due to host the Olympics in two years time, Neri believes the World Cup has done a lot to improve the mood in Brazil.
I think t…
A potential return to Newcastle for Andy Carroll is in the hands of chairman Mike Ashley and the Liverpool board, manager Alan Pardew says.
Carroll cost the Merseyside club 35 million pounds when he made the switch to Anfield in January 2011, but it is believed new boss Brendan Rodgers does not see the striker as suitable for the style of play he plans to implement next season.
Several reports have suggested Newcastle have already had a loan offer for the 23-year-old, which supposedly included an option to make the deal permanent for a fee of around 13 million pounds, turned down.
Liverpool, it has been claimed, are holding out for a higher figure of around 20 million pounds as they look to recoup a more significant chunk of their original outlay.
It wi…
Saint Etienne, the club where UEFA president Michel Platini made his name in the 1970s and early 1980s, is in danger of becoming the forgotten team of French football, with 11 defeats in 15 league outings this season having plunged them to the foot of the table.
Ten league titles, six domestic cups, an appearance in a European Cup final and a list of former stars including Platini and Dominique Rocheteau.
Thirty years ago it was all so different for a club which once was used to dining at the top table of the European game.
Had it not been for a goal in the dying minutes of the second leg at Anfield in an epic 1977 European Cup quarter-final from Liverpool s legendary supersub David Fairclough the French, losing finalists a year earlier to Bayern Munich, woul…
Real Madrid could be willing to part ways with Gareth Bale in the summer, according to .
Both Bale and manager Zinedine Zidane have recently stated that the Welsh star s focus and future lie with , but Zidane has lately been preferring the likes of Isco, Marco Asensio and Lucas Vazquez ahead of Bale.
Up to this point, Bale has missed 36% of Real s games since he arrived at the club due to injuries. Nevertheless, he has been an important piece of the puzzle. He scored some trophy-winning goals over the five years he has spent there so far, and the number of trophies he s won is impressive in itself.
However, in the recent Champions League tie against Paris Saint-Germain, Bale was left on the bench when fully fit and ready to play for the first time since he s bee…
Former Northern Ireland captain Aaron Hughes has retired from professional football.
The 39-year-old defender did not play as Michael O Neill s side won 1-0 away to Belarus in Euro 2020 qualifying on Tuesday.
Hughes has made 112 appearances for his country, more than any other outfield player and behind only goalkeeper Pat Jennings.
The former Newcastle United and Fulham centre-back has not publicly announced his decision but told his international team-mates after Paddy McNair s goal secured victory in Borisov.
Aaron spoke to us after the game and he was a little bit emotional, which is understandable, said Northern Ireland captain Steven Davis.
He has been a huge player for us over many years, such a consistent performer, and he will be reme…
Eric Abidal is to leave Barcelona after six years at Camp Nou when his contract expires next month.
Abidal has made 192 appearances for the Catalan giants since signing from Lyon in 2007, but his football career has been largely overshadowed by health issues in recent years.
The French defender was diagnosed with a tumour on his liver in March 2011, immediately undergoing surgery and returning to action just six weeks later and captaining Barca to UEFA Champions League success against Manchester United.
However, in March 2012 it was announced that Abidal would have to undergo a liver transplant due to unresolved issues from his surgery, limiting him to just four appearances since.
He explained that he would have preferred to stay on at Barcelona but the club were not willing to …
Luka Modric wants to dominate domestic and European football with Real Madrid after signing a one-year contract extension.
The Croatia international joined the club from Tottenham in 2012 and clinched the Supercopa de Espana in his first season at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League winners medals followed during 2013-14, while Real started the new season on a winning note, beating Sevilla 2-0 in the UEFA Super Cup last week.
With Modric now committed to Real until 2018, the 28-year-old hopes more success will follow, starting with the Supercopa second leg against Atletico Madrid on Friday, with the tie level at 1-1.
When I arrived here two years ago, we won the Supercopa de Espana, he told Real s official website.
It w…
Iran on Sunday sacked its national football team coach Ali Daei following its defeat against Saudi Arabia in a 2010 World Cup qualifier, the state news agency IRNA reported on Sunday.
Ali Daei was sacked from coaching the national team in response to people s demands for his negligence in fulfilling his duty and the team s poor results in World Cup qualifiers, IRNA said, quoting an unnamed source.
The announcement of Daei s dismissal who is the world record-holder scorer in international matches, came after his lacklustre performances as coach for the 2010 World Cup Asia s qualifiers.
Iran, seeking a fourth appearance in the finals, are fourth in Group B with six points from five games managing only a win and three consecutive draws.
Daei s dismissal be…
Welsh midfielder Ryan Giggs reached yet another milestone in his already impressive career, playing his 800th match for reigning European champions Manchester United this Wednesday.
Giggs started on the bench but was brought on in the second half of the Champions League semi final clash with Arsenal, at Old Trafford.
The Welshman started his career at Manchester City in 1985 but joined local rivals United two years later. With the Red Devils, Giggs would end up winning one trophy after the other.
The player formed a key part of the United teams that won the Champions League in 1999 and 2008, and helped the English giants to no less than ten domestic titles.
In February, Giggs and United agreed to yet another contract extension, keeping the player at the …