Schalke are focused on exposing the few frailties in Real Madrid s game in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday, says Roberto Di Matteo.
Roberto Di Matteo is not intimidated by the propsect of facing UEFA Champions League holders Real Madrid on Wednesday, and hopes to cause them a few headaches.
The two sides come together for the second successive season in the competition as the knockout stages get underway, with Schalke keen to avoid a repeat of last season s 9-2 aggregate defeat.
Schalke come into the game having seen a five-game unbeaten run in the Bundesliga come to an end against Eintracht Frankfurt on Saturday, but Di Matteo is confident that will not affect their confidence at the Veltins Arena.
We re playing the title holders, but our goal…
Lionel Messi possesses a special quality that makes him the best player in the world above Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar, according to Brazil head coach Tite.
The Barcelona star scored on his return from a groin injury in the 4-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna, before he netted a hat-trick in the 4-0 Champions League victory over Manchester City at Camp Nou on Wednesday.
Brazil meet Argentina on November 11 in what could prove to be a pivotal World Cup qualifier, with Messi set to meet team-mate Neymar in an international encounter for the first time since a 1-1 draw in a friendly in Beijing in 2014.
While Tite believes Neymar has established himself as one of the three finest footballers in the world, along with Messi and Ronaldo, he considers Messi to be a cut abo…
Aston Villa received a pre-match message from Prince William before their much-needed 1-0 win over Southampton in the Premier League.
Jacob Ramsey s first-half strike was enough to give Villa the home victory on Friday, and manager Steven Gerrard said his players had received a royal message.
Former Liverpool midfielder Gerrard revealed the Prince, who is a fan of the Midlands clubs, had said he would have liked to have been present at Villa Park, but was understandably busy following the recent passing of his grandmother, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
Speaking at his post-match press conference, Gerrard said: He messaged in the week, to the club, and that shows everything about what he thinks of this club. For us to reward that with a result and clean sheet,…
Kylian Mbappe was joined on the scoresheet by Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz as Paris Saint-Germain put a tumultuous week behind them with a 3-1 win at Troyes, restoring their six-point lead at the Ligue 1 summit.
After a chaotic few days in which PSG suspended Lionel Messi over an unauthorised trip to Saudi Arabia and admonished fans for protesting outside Neymar s home, the champions were in full control at Stade de l Aube.
Mbappe headed an early opener from almost directly underneath the crossbar, before Vitinha bundled home a second after the break.
Xavier Chavalerin s late header halved the arrears, but Fabian fired off the post and in to seal PSG s victory, re-establishing their six-point cushion to closest challengers Lens.
SIGNATURE CELEBRATION
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Sunderland attacker Fabio Borini is excited for the chance to play against former club Chelsea for the first time on Wednesday.
Borini who is at Sunderland on a season-long loan from Liverpool is hoping to be involved against the UEFA Europa League holders at The Stadium of Light.
Gus Poyet s side are bottom of the Premier League table, five points from safety, but have won their last three home matches in all competitions.
And Italian Borini, who was at Chelsea from 2007 to 2011, is hopeful Sunderland s home support can spur them onto another stirring triumph.
I have lots of friends still at Chelsea, Borini told the club s official website.
I was there a long time and experienced a lot during my time there. For me I am looking forward to playing against th…
Leicester City face the daunting prospect of keeping English football s most lethal attacking unit in check when they host Manchester City.
Nigel Pearson s side have slipped to third in the Championship following a run of three league games without a win, and entertain a team who have scored an incredible 47 goals in 16 Premier League outings this term.
The firepower at Manuel Pellegrini s disposal is perhaps best illustrated by the fact City have scored nine goals in their last two matches, against Premier League leaders Arsenal on Saturday and UEFA Champions League holders Bayern Munich last week.
City have also scored seven across two League Cup ties this season, following up a 5-0 hammering of Wigan Athletic with a 2-0 away win at Newcastle United to book their qua…
EA Sports has revealed the 10 highest-rated players on FIFA 20 ahead of the game s release later this month, with Lionel Messi back on top after Cristiano Ronaldo ranked first last year.
Messi enjoyed another stellar campaign for Barcelona in 2018-19, scoring 36 goals in 34 LaLiga matches, inspiring the club s title defence and run to the Champions League semi-finals.
Ronaldo s first season at Juventus – who will be known as Piemonte Calcio on FIFA 20 – went as smoothly as might have been expected, with the forward finishing as the club s top-scorer as they claimed an eighth successive Scudetto, though that was not enough to retain his crown as FIFA s highest-rated player.
Neither Ronaldo nor Messi were able to win the Champions League, however, with that hon…
Real Madrid star Toni Kroos has been named Footballer of the Year by sports writers in Germany.
The Association of German Sports Journalists (VDS), in conjunction with football magazine Kicker, gave the midfielder 185 of the 475 votes cast to ensure he won the award, which he was beaten to by Philipp Lahm in 2017-18, for the first time in his career.
The 28-year-old was a key member of the Madrid side that claimed a third successive Champions League title by beating Liverpool 3-1 in Kiev in May, adding to the UEFA Super Cup, Supercopa de Espana and Club World Cup titles claimed earlier in the season.
Freiburg striker Nils Petersen came second with 39 votes, while Schalke defender Naldo finished third after receiving one ballot fewer.
It is and always wil…
Germany team manager Oliver Bierhoff hinted Saturday that rebel striker Kevin Kuranyi could be set for a shock recall to the national side in time for this June s World Cup.
Kuranyi has not played for Germany since walking out on the team in October 2008 after being left out of the matchday squad for a World Cup qualifier, prompting coach Joachim Loew to declare he would never pick him again.
However Kuranyi s 18 goals for Schalke 04 has forced Loew into a re-think.
Ahead of the weekend s Bundesliga games Kuranyi is joint second in the league scoring charts behind Wolfsburg s Edin Dzeko, and Bierhoff admits a shock U-turn announcement could be expected by the end of the month.
We are grateful to have players in great shape, Bierhoff told Cologne newspap…
New Manchester City recruit Patrick Vieira says he has a 100 percent chance of playing for France at next summer s World Cup finals, despite having not represented his country since June 2009.
As I m an optimist, I m going to say 100 percent, he said in response to a question about his chances of playing in South Africa on the Canal Football Club television show on Sunday evening.
The desire is there, it s my goal. In my head, I don t see myself missing the World Cup.
Vieira, who has yet to play for his new club, admitted that he had received no guarantees from France coach Raymond Domenech, who he met shortly before Christmas, and conceded that the situation is not as simple as that .
But he said that as soon as I m playing, there s no reason why I …