England boss Roy Hodgson has just realised he might finally have discover the formula to adventurous football
The English British press love to build-up up the England national team, just so they can knock them down when they underachieve at major tournaments.
However, say it quietly but England fans have some optimism ahead of Euro 2016.
A 3-2 win against world champions Germany in Berlin on Saturday night means that the Three Lions have suffered just one defeat in their last 18 internationals, and that defeat came against reigning European champions Spain.
Freshness about the team
The England team that played most of the qualifiers is far different to the one that took the field and produced such a decent display against Germany. A number of pl…
Pedri will only be further motivated by comparisons to Andres Iniesta, so says Barcelona boss Xavi.
Blaugrana great Xavi referenced his former team-mate Iniesta while lauding Pedri in midweek.
Pedri has previously drawn comparisons to Iniesta due to his silky footwork and neat passing ability, but Xavi did not hold back in enthusing over the teenager s talent following a wonderful showing in Barca s 4-0 win over Athletic Bilbao last week.
How [Pedri] understands the game, it s wonderful to watch him play, Xavi told reporters after that game. He reminds me a lot of Andres Iniesta, I haven t seen many talents like that.
Next up for Barca is a trip to Elche on Sunday, and Xavi was pressed on his comments on Pedri in the pre-match news conference.
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Raheem Sterling says playing for England is one of the best feelings you can ever have , admitting he misses representing his national side.
The winger last played for England in the 2022 World Cup, coming off the bench in their 2-1 quarter-final defeat to France.
Since then, he has failed to make the last seven squads in a row, including the party for Euro 2024 which saw the Three Lions reach a second consecutive European Championship final.
Gareth Southgate resigned following their defeat to Spain in that final, with Under-21 boss Lee Carsley expected to be in charge for the upcoming Nations League matches in September, with no permanent successor appointed yet.
Sterling, who has earned 82 caps for England since making his debut in 2012, admitted he mis…
Spain will face England in Sunday’s Women’s World Cup final less than a year after 15 players staged a mutiny over their treatment.
The row, which broke out in September last year, threatened to derail coach Jorge Vilda’s mission before an uneasy peace was brokered as the tournament neared.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look at what happened and the repercussions.
What is Vilda’s background?
The 42-year-old is steeped in football having grown up watching is father Angel – currently head of women’s football at the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) – working as a physical trainer for among others, Luis Aragones at Atletico Madrid, Johan Cruyff at Barcelona and Jupp Heynckes at Real Madrid.
Having worked his way up through the age groups, …
Fulham forward Willian is delighted to have proved detractors wrong in his return to the Premier League this campaign.
The 34-year-old spent seven seasons at Chelsea and joined Arsenal in 2020, where his three-year agreement was cut short by mutual consent after just one season.
Some wondered if that unhappy spell at the Emirates would mark the end of the Brazil international’s time in the English top flight before Marco Silva’s side snapped him up on a one-year deal set to expire in June.
Willian, who picked up an assist in Fulham’s 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace, said: “When I left Chelsea, Arsenal, it didn’t work, you know, and then I went back to Brazil. I think some people did think I was finished but I proved, not for them but for me, that I can pla…
Adrien Rabiot is very focused on Juventus, despite reports linking him with a return to Paris Saint-Germain.
The France international has been heavily linked with a move away from Turin, with his contract with the Bianconeri due to expire in June.
Former club PSG are reportedly interested in re-signing the midfielder, who won five Ligue 1 titles and racked up over 200 appearances during his first spell with the French giants between 2010 and 2019.
But the 27-year-old s immediate attention is on ensuring a strong end to the 2022-23 campaign with Juve who, despite a 15-point deduction, are just four points outside the top four.
When asked about the reported PSG interest, he told Telefoot: Honestly, there is nothing special. I hear a lot of noise. I know tha…
Serie A champions Napoli slipped to a shock defeat on Sunday as Monza claimed a deserved 2-0 win against the Partenopei at Stadio Brianteo.
Goals from Dany Mota and Napoli loanee Andrea Petagna handed Luciano Spalletti s men just their fourth top-flight loss of the season, dampening their ongoing title celebrations.
Spalletti opted for a handful of changes against mid-table opposition, and will have expected more from his men despite the low-stakes nature of this clash.
But for Raffaele Palladino, his Biancorossi will nevertheless delight in taking one of the biggest scalps of their successful first campaign in the top flight.
With Napoli already champions and Monza secure in their Serie A place for next season, a lacklustre dead rubber appeared to be on …
Ben Davies believes Wales reaching Euro 2024 would be “better in some ways” than previous successful qualifying campaigns.
Davies is among a handful of survivors from the Chris Coleman squad that reached the semi-finals of Euro 2016 in France.
The 30-year-old Tottenham defender was also part of Wales teams that qualified for Euro 2020 and the 2022 World Cup.
Wales are now hoping to reach a fourth major tournament out of five this summer but must do so without former talismanic captain Gareth Bale, who retired just before Euro 2024 qualification began.
“It would be just as good as (reaching) the others, better in some ways,” said Davies ahead of Thursday’s play-off semi-final against Finland in Cardiff.
“It’s different times. We don�…
Laurent Blanc has called on Samir Nasri to reproduce his club form for France in their Euro 2012 qualifier against Albania.
Nasri, 24, was among the standouts for Manchester City in their 5-1 English Premier League victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday.
The attacking midfielder also impressed during his three seasons with Arsenal, but is yet to fully convince on the international stage.
France top Group D of Euro 2012 qualifying by one point from Belarus and will be on the hunt for more points when they take on Albania in Tirana.
According to Blanc, Nasri can become a major force for France as they continue to recover from a disappointing 2010 World Cup.
It would be good for some players to become important, just as they are for their club. W…
Bradley Carnell is taking last week s 3-3 draw with Inter Miami as a sign of St. Louis City making huge strides in attack, as they prepare to host the Portland Timbers on Saturday.
St. Louis sit 11th in the Western Conference, three points behind the improving Timbers, after playing out a thrilling draw with Lionel Messi and company.
That result ended a three-match losing run for Carnell s team, and he hopes it will represent something of a turning point in their season.
When you score three goals and create the amount of chances we did, I saw a lot of good things against a counter-pressing Miami team with a full roster, Carnell said.
To go away from home and score three goals, it gives me a lot of hope. We ve been working hard on exploiting space in tr…