Новости за 21.08.2019

Lionel Messi could return to action for LaLiga champions Barcelona against Real Betis on Sunday after recovering from a leg injury.The Argentina playmaker has been out since August 5 and missed his sides 1-0 opening weekend defeat at Athletic Bilbao.But Messi joined his team-mates in full training on Wednesday ahead of the home clash with Betis. Back in training with the group pic.twitter.com/D2Nk5FFNXm FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) August 21, 2019Its the news weve all been waiting for and it finally... Читать дальше...

Steven Gerrard insists Rangers are not scared by Legia Warsaw but he does admit it might take their best display of the season to battle past the Poles into the Europa League group stages.The Ibrox men put on a dazzling display to knock out Danes Midtjylland in the last round of the competition.But Gerrard confessed it might take an even better showing to shake of Legia and seal a return to the league phase they reached last year.Were not afraid of any Legia players, insisted Gerrard ahead of the... Читать дальше...

Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo has dismissed suggestions the Premier League clubs Portuguese links could prove useful in their Europa League showdown with Torino.Nunos side meet the Serie A outfit at the Stadio Olimpico Grande Torino on Thursday evening in the fist leg of their play-off tie, with referee Artur Dias and his team taking charge.Like the Wanderers boss, his coaching staff and seven members of the squad, the officials are from Portugal, prompting claims from sections of Italian media... Читать дальше...

Phil Parkinson has resigned as manager of Bolton, adding to the chaos engulfing the Sky Bet League One club.Parkinson, who had been at the helm for just over three years, and his assistant Steve Parkin have quit as off-field problems continue to dog them.Bolton, who started the campaign on minus 12 points and postponed their game with Doncaster on Tuesday night, say they are considering the resignations.EFL statement: Bolton Wanderers v Doncaster Rovers.https://t.co/lZlknUIpvm#EFL pic.twitter.com/X2H2AjdsNO EFL (@EFL) August 19... Читать дальше...

Arsenal are ready to offer Matteo Guendouzi a new five-year contract, according to theDaily Mail.The Frenchman moved to the Emirates Stadium from Lorient for just £7.2m last summer.The midfielder went on to make 48 appearances in his debut campaign in north London.And Guendouzi has already made such an impact at Arsenal that the club are keen to secure his future by offering him a new five-year deal.The 20-year-old's current contract runs until 2022, with Guendouzi earning around £35,000.Arsenal... Читать дальше...

Club Brugge are readying a bid for Tottenham midfielder Victor Wanyama, write theDaily Express.The Kenya international has fallen down the pecking order in north London following the arrivals of Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele this summer.Wanyama hasn't been involved in either of Spurs' first two matches of the 2019/20 season.And Club Brugge are hoping the offer of more regular game time will appeal to the former Southampton man.The Belgian club are poised to submit an offer of £18m to Tottenham... Читать дальше...

Life at the Riverside under rookie boss Jonathan Woodgate hasn't exactly been plain sailing–just the one win so far this season, picked up in Boro's most recent Championship game against Wigan Athletic. In the Carabao Cup, Boro were dumped out by Crewe on penalties.But maybe that paints a bleaker picture ofthe story so far. The Luton and Brentford games could have been easily won with more ruthlessness in the final third, and Middlesbrough’s start to the season would have had a much more positive outlook. Читать дальше...

A former director at ailing Bury has chained herself to the main stand pleading for help to save the club from extinction.Joy Hart, whose father Les is a Bury legend, having been player, physio, trainer and manager, called on Burys billionaire footballing neighbours in the Premier League to step in before a looming Friday deadline set by the Football League when the clubs 135-year history will end.Ms Hart, chained by a handcuff on her left hand to a downpipe on the main stand outside Bury reception... Читать дальше...

Former Premier League official Neil Swarbrick believes it is too early to consider altering the way match-going supporters are kept informed about video assistant referee decisions.VAR technology was rolled out across the English top flight at the start of the season and there have been several talking points over the first two weeks of the campaign.Wolves and Manchester City have had goals ruled out after the VAR highlighted handballs in the build-up play, while some fans inside stadiums have complained... Читать дальше...

Representatives of Twitter are planning to meet with officials at Manchester United to discuss the racial abuse aimed at Paul Pogba on the social media platform.The United midfielder this week became the latest high-profile player to be racially abused online after missing a penalty in his sides draw against Wolves on Monday.Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham and Readings Yakou Meite have also been targetted in a similar way after failing to score spot-kicks in the past week.Rui Patricio saved Pogbas... Читать дальше...

Pundit Ian Holloway has moved to clarify his comments over Brexit and the new handball law, calling for referees discussions to be broadcast as they are in rugby.Manchester Citys Gabriel Jesus saw what could have been a late winning goal for Manchester City against Tottenham on Saturday ruled out following a VAR review.Under the new changes to the laws of the game which took effect from June 1, any use of the hand which leads to a goal or a goal-scoring opportunity will be penalised, whether intentional... Читать дальше...

Defiant Neil Lennon has launched a bullish defence of his under-fire side as he insisted criticism aimed at Celtic has bordered on hysteria.Critics have rounded on the Hoops boss and his team since they were dumped out of the Champions League by Romanians Cluj last week.The flak intensified after it took extra-time and a deflected James Forrest strike to see off Championship side Dunfermline in the Betfred Cup on Saturday.But Lennon has hit out at those rushing to write Celtic off and believes his... Читать дальше...

Marcos Rojo is close to leaving Manchester United for Fenerbahce, according toA Spor.Rojo is not in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's plans for the 2019/20 campaign and has yet to be included in a United matchday squad this term.The Argentinedefender came close to joining Everton before the English transfer window closed, but United pulled the plug on the deal as they feared the Toffees would prove to be top-four rivals.Rojo is now set to seal a loan move to Turkey, with Fenerbahce closing in on his signature.Most... Читать дальше...

Liverpool will not budge on their stance over Ryan Kent and the winger will not be allowed to join Rangers on loan.Reports in Scotland suggested the 22-year-old, whose solitary first-team appearance for the Reds came in an FA Cup tie in January 2016, was prepared to try to force a move back to Ibrox, where he had a successful spell last season.However, Liverpools position has been clear from the start of the summer in that they see no value for them or the player in allowing him to return on loan... Читать дальше...

Juventus striker Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed that he could hang up his boots as early as next year.The 34-year-old has enjoyed a glittering career, winning a joint-record five Ballon d'Ors as well as multiple trophies in England, Spain and Italy.The former Manchester United and Real Madrid forward is also the top scorer in Champions League history with 126 goals.However, Ronaldo has revealed that he doesn't know when he will call time on his playing career."I don’t need football to live well,... Читать дальше...

From Thierry Henry’s turn-and-volley to Eric Cantona’s chip and yes-I-just-did-that non-celebration, great Premier League players have scored great Premier League goals.Then there are goals that tick only one of those two boxes. Wayne Rooney’s Manchester derby bicycle kick was voted as the greatest strike from the Premier League’s first 20 years even though he shinned it, and praising something the goalscorer didn’t try to do is akin to naming a miscue snooker’s crowning moment.Essentially, the reputations... Читать дальше...

Accrington owner Andy Holt has blamed the football authorities for the financial crisis that has engulfed the clubs neighbours and League One rivals Bolton and Bury.Both were given 12-point penalties for entering administration after the end of last season but Bury have not even been able to start the new campaign, while Bolton cancelled Tuesdays game against Doncaster because they only had three senior players available.Bolton, who were relegated from the Championship last season, had hoped to be... Читать дальше...

Paul Dummett has called time on his Wales career after manager Ryan Giggs revealed the Newcastle defender made himself unavailable for international duty.Dummett has won only five caps in a stop-start international career, but Giggs admitted the 27-year-old was in contention to play in next months vital Euro 2020 qualifier against Azerbaijan.Giggs, who has concerns in central defence and left skipper Ashley Williams out of his 26-man squad as the veteran is currently without a club, suggested Dummetts... Читать дальше...

Arsenal’s summer transfer window was a little more active than expected, with the club’s net spend around £90 million (much of which will be spread across windows, it must be said). This has allowed Unai Emery to strengthen in key areas, even though stories circulated that they had a budget of less than half of that figure.Nicolas Pepe’s switch from Lille has been a major factor in this, and the deadline-day signing of David Luiz finally addressed a longstanding issue within the centre of defence. Читать дальше...

Ian Holloway has blamed the European Union for anew handball rule that was introduced among new Premier League rules this summer.From the start of 2019/20, goals will be disallowed if the ball strikes the arm of the scorer or a team-matein the build-up, regardless of intention.The regulation has already caused controversy in the Premier League, with Gabriel Jesus seeing his 'goal' chalked off by VAR after the ball first hit Aymeric Laporte's forearminManchester City's 2-2 draw with Tottenham on Saturday.SEE... Читать дальше...

Being able to call on a reliable penalty taker is a bigasset to any team, so – while we applaud all of the 51 players below who’ve had the courage and skill to step up and slot home 10 or more Premier League pens – we’re particularly impressed by those who’ve achieved perfection.A hearty well done to the Arsenal dead-eye who’s converted a remarkable 22 out of 22, plus the five other players who’ve also reached double figures for Prem penalties without missing a single one.Now it's time for you to step up. Читать дальше...

Nicolas Pepe has credited Unai Emery's ability to speak French as a key reason for him quicklysettling into life at Arsenal.The Gunners broke their transfer record to acquire the Ivory Coast international from Lille for £72m this summer.Pepe made his Premier League debut in the 1-0 win at Newcastle on the opening weekend of the season, before Emery handed him 44 minutes of action in Saturday's 2-1 victory over Burnley.And the winger believes his manager's linguistic skills have helped him make an... Читать дальше...

First things first, an apology. In July, we published a piece about 2019/20’s rule changes and thought the amendment to Law 12 regarding accidental handball – “it is an offence if a player scores in the opponents’ goal directly from their hand/arm, even if accidental” – wouldn’t cause too many problems. Oops.A fortnight into the new Premier League season and we already have two goals, and wins for Wolves and Manchester City by proxy, ruled out for accidental handball in the build-up. Planet football... Читать дальше...

Rangers take on Legia Warsaw in the Europa League play-off round on Thursday.Here, the PA news agency takes a look at their Polish opponents ahead of the first leg.HistoryLegia were formed in 1916 as the official football team of the Polish Army but it would be 11 years before the club would join the countrys top flight. Success was limited until the first of a record 19 Polish Cups was claimed in September 1955, followed four weeks later by a maiden league title. Since then Legia have gone on to... Читать дальше...

Jadon Sancho has agreed a new £190,000-a-week contract at Borussia Dortmund, according to theDaily Mail.The England international was one of the breakout stars in European football last season, scoring 12 goals and providing 14 assists as Dortmund challenged for the Bundesliga title.His exploits in Germany led to rumours that Manchester United were interested in bringing the former Manchester City star back to the Premier League.However, Sancho is on the verge of committing his future to BVB by putting... Читать дальше...