Новости за 18.11.2019

Chelsea’s visit to Manchester City on Saturday evening will be billed as an early examination of Frank Lampard’s management. The season is nearly four months old, but still the suspicion remains that Lampard’s progress is a feelgood story, a tale of intangibles rather than one with basis in technical merit.It’s not fair, but it’s understandable. There’s something so seductive about Chelsea’s recent arc and anyone not charmed by it is being miserly.There’s plenty of reason, though, to believe that... Читать дальше...

Michael ONeill believes Northern Ireland are moving in the right direction despite missing out on automatic qualification for Euro 2020.The Green and White Army play their final Group C fixture on Tuesday when they face Germany in Frankfurt, but attention is already shifting to the play-offs in March after Saturdays goalless draw with Holland ended any chance of advancing directly.That Northern Ireland could not match their achievement of reaching Euro 2016 out of a group that included the Dutch and Germans is no surprise... Читать дальше...

Joe Gelhardt is highly sought after having impressed forWigan off the bench this season.He's made six league appearances for the Championship side this season, scoring one goal.The 17-year-old is also captain ofthe England under-18 side.According to the Daily Star, Chelsea are the latest club to be won over by Gelhartd's promise.This season, under Chelsea's transfer ban, Frank Lampard has built a reputation for nurturing young English talent.The likes of Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham and Fikayo Tomori... Читать дальше...

Jack Ross is keen to make a little bit of history with Hibernian.The 43-year-old was appointed as the clubs new head coach on a three-and-a-half-year deal last week.The former Alloa and St Mirren boss was sacked by English League One side Sunderland in October.He replaces Paul Heckingbottom, who departed Easter Road earlier in November after nine months in charge.Ross told HibsTV about his attraction to the club who are sitting in eighth place in the Ladbrokes Premiership with 12 points from 12 games.He said... Читать дальше...

Scotland take on Kazakhstan in their final Euro 2020 qualifier at Hampden Park on Tuesday night.Steve Clarkes side have no chance of qualifying through the conventional method but can qualify through the Nations League play-offs which take place in March.Here, the PA news agency looks at the main talking points ahead of the Scots last Group I game of the campaign.Three and easyScotland boss Steve Clarke at a press conference ahead of the Kazakhstan game (Ronnie Esplin/PA)Boss Clarke is hoping to... Читать дальше...

Steve Clarke ruled out a revenge mission in Scotlands final 2020 European Championship qualifier against Kazakhstan at Hampden Park on Tuesday night.The Scots began their doomed campaign with a shock 3-0 defeat in Nur-Sultan in March, with Alex McLeish being replaced as boss after the expected win in San Marino days later.The 2-1 win over Cyprus in Nicosia on Saturday moved Scotland above the hosts into thirdplace in Group I behind Belgium and Russia albeit with no chance of automatic qualification for next summers finals... Читать дальше...

Last summer's transfer saga involving Neymar and his desire to return to Barcelona dominated the back pages.Since arriving in Paris, Neymar has performed well and has won titles - but he's struggled with injury and is understood to miss Spain.Paris Saint-Germain's hierarchy were very publicly angry about Neymar's apparent disloyalty.Nasser Al-Khelafi made it nigh-on impossible for Neymar to re-sign forBarcelona by demanding astronomical fees for the Brazilian.Barça reportedly proposed a number of player-plus-cash options... Читать дальше...

Stories that Barcelona wanted Marcus Rashford in April were laughed off by many Manchester United fans. Every United player was performing poorly, including the Mancunian striker, and some fans couldn’t understand why the Catalans would choose him to play alongside Lionel Messi.Fans are often harder on their own and the interest was genuine. Barça felt that he was young enough to be coached into their style, as well as fast, skilful and capable of playing anywhere across the front three. Rashford’s representatives spoke with them... Читать дальше...

Wales and Hungary meet in a winner-takes-all clash for Euro 2020 qualification in Cardiff on Tuesday.Hungary won the Budapest reverse fixture 1-0 in June but Wales have gone five games unbeaten since that defeat.Here, the PA news agency looks at the main talking points.Handling the pressureSuccess at Euro 2016 has raised the expectation levels in Welsh football (Joe Giddens/PA)Reaching the semi-finals of Euro 2016 and the emergence of another talented generation has raised the expectations of Wales football fans. Читать дальше...

Northern Ireland wrap up their Group C fixtures in Euro 2020 qualifying with a trip to face Germany in Frankfurt on Tuesday night.Here, the PA news agency gives you the lowdown on their opponents at the Commerzbank Arena.Head coachJoachim Low has been Germany coach since 2006 (Brian Lawless/PA)Joachim Low has seen plenty of highs and a fair number of lows since becoming Germany coach all the way back in 2006, having spent the previous two years working as an assistant to Jurgen Klinsmann. The highest... Читать дальше...

Flamengo recently promoted Reinier Jesus to the senior squad and amid his impressive form at youth level for club and country.The 17-year-old repaid the faith put in him by scoring four goals in his first 12 games in Brazil'sSerie A.Reinier has caught the eye of a number of Europe's top clubs including Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid andJuventus.But it is Arsenal who are attempting to steal a march on their continental rivals by talking to the player's father.Mundo Deportivo (via the Metro) report that... Читать дальше...

Two years ago this week, the Italian national team hit arguably their lowest moment in their history. One of the most famous footballing countries in the worlddid the unthinkable and failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.While that particular failure was deemed as a national disaster, it was the pinnacle of a remarkable slump in form for the four-time World Cup winners.After winning the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Italy had gone out in the group stages at the next two World Cups.While... Читать дальше...

Gabriel Jesus has admitted to learning all he can from Manchester City team-mate Sergio Aguero in his bid to become Brazils best striker.In the absence of the injured Neymar, Jesus is among those expected to fill the void left by the Paris St Germain star.The 22-year-old failed to find the mark in Fridays 1-0 friendly defeat to arch-rivals Argentina in Saudi Arabia, with Lionel Messi scoring the only goal from the penalty spot, but will be looking to make amends on Tuesday when Brazil take on South... Читать дальше...

Luis Suarez has been at Barcelona for five years, scoring 137 goals during that time.But the Uruguayan turns 33 in January and the club are making preparations to replace him atthe spearhead of their attack.Suarez recently publicly acknowledged the fact that Barça were searching for a striker.He conceded that there would always come a time his body would simply not do what the club expect of him anymore.Suarez told Uruguayan outlet Ovacion: "A time will arrive when my age will not allow me to play at the level Barcelona require... Читать дальше...

Jamal Lewis has withdrawn from the Northern Ireland squad for their final Euro 2020 qualifier against Germany on Tuesday with a knee injury.The Norwich left-back did not travel to Frankfurt and has returned to the Premier League club for assessment on the problem.Lewis, 21, started Saturdays goalless draw against Holland but was replaced by Jordan Thompson late on due to the injury.Jamal Lewis has returned to Norwich City for assessment on a knee issue sustained during Northern Irelands 0-0 draw against the Netherlands... Читать дальше...

Neil Harris has dismissed suggestions that he is Neil Warnock Mark II after being unveiled as Cardiffs new manager.Warnocks three-year stay with the Bluebirds came to an end last week and former Millwall boss Harris has been labelled as having similar principles based on direct football to his 70-year-old predecessor.I think people are referring to the club I was at previously and the way we played, said Harris, who revealed Warnock had sent him a text congratulating him on his appointment.I was... Читать дальше...

Mikel and Hazard spent five years together at Chelsea and lifted the Premier League together on two occasions.The Nigerian now plays his football in Turkey with Trabzonspor after spells for Tianjin in China and Middlesbrough back in England.Last summer Hazard secured his dream move to Real Madrid in what was the biggest deal of the transfer window.The Belgian has, however, struggled in Spain so far and has come under criticism from the media.Mikel doesn't doubt Hazard's ability - he believes his... Читать дальше...

Mason Mount admits things could get heated when England players face off in big club encounters but insists the camp will remain united moving forward.The Three Lions recovered from a tumultuous start to the week to thrash Montenegro and Kosovo to seal qualification as group winners and a place among the six top seeds for Euro 2020.A 7-0 home win over Montenegro was followed up by a 4-0 victory in Pristina on Sunday evening, with Raheem Sterlings physical alteration with Joe Gomez at the start of... Читать дальше...

From academy products to big-money signings, one-club men to those who were just passing through, the armband has found its way to a great variety of players.Can you name the last three captains of every current Premier League club? That means official captains, not those who just wore the armband on occasion, and with some clubs that means looking back at their spells in the Championship or below.We've given you 12minutes to name as many as you can -let us know how you got on by tweeting us@FourFourTwo... Читать дальше...

Harry Kane became the first England player to score in every game of a European Championship qualification campaign as he netted in Sundays 4-0 win in Kosovo.Kane scored 12 goals in the eight qualifiers and moved up to sixth in the list of Englands all-time record goalscorers.Of those players ahead of him, only Jimmy Greaves has a better goals-per-game average for his country and, at his current scoring rate, the England captain will surpass Wayne Rooneys national record of 53 goals in another 31 internationals.(PA graphics)Here... Читать дальше...

Lukaku signed for Manchester United in 2017 for a huge £76m but only stayed at the club for two years.Steve Walsh was Everton's director of football at the time of the transfer and he was concerned by the Belgian's attitude.Walsh played a key role in Leicester City's title-winning season of 2015/16, when he was a scout for the Foxes.Jose Mourinho had an existing relationship with Walsh, having worked with himduring his first stint atChelsea.And Walsh made sure to warn his former colleague of Lukaku's... Читать дальше...

This article first appeared in the Autumn 2019 issue of FourFourTwo –buy it now for just £4.99The record books state that on Wednesday November 18, 2009, France defeated the Republic of Ireland 2-1 on aggregate to qualify for the 2010 World Cup finals.But ultimately, with a moment of enormous controversy on the Paris pitch leading to many months of fallout off it, this was a football match where – somehow – everyone lost.A month earlier, the draw for the play-offs had been held in Zurich. Giovanni Trapattoni’s Irish team... Читать дальше...

The Midlander worked miracles with the Swedish minnows, guiding them from the fourth tier to the top flight as well, as tasting Swedish Cup success and reaching the Europa League knockout stages.It was in that 2017/18 Europa League run that Ostersund faced the Gunners in the last 32, losing 3-0 at home before threatening to overturn the deficit by taking a 2-0 lead at the Emirates Stadium.Arsenal eventually prevailed 4-2 on aggregate and the visitors left with heads held high. However, Potter prefers... Читать дальше...

Roughly speaking, there are two chapters in the Zlatan Ibrahimovic story. It doesn’t quite comprise a before-and-after, but there was certainly a time when Ibrahimovic was less than what he is now – more of footballer, less of a marketing embellishment.In fact, it’s strange to think back to a time when Ibrahimovic was considered enigmatic. His career predates the YouTube age. It also began and matured before the current television era, making him – generally speaking – Serie A’s privilege alone.The effect was some kind of mystery. Читать дальше...

What the papers sayManchester City are reportedly weighing-up a move for Bayern Munich winger Kingsley Coman if the German champions sign Leroy Sane in the summer of 2020, the Daily Mirror says.Crystal Palaceare to make a 20million bid forCelticsFrench striker Odsonne Edouard, The Sun reports.Manchester Unitedare set for talks with Tahith Chongs representatives as the club look to fend off interest from Juventus in the 19-year-old Dutch midfielder, according to Metro.Manchester Uniteds Tahith Chong... Читать дальше...