Vincenzo Montella has hinted he would be interested in becoming the new Italy national team coach.
Montella, whose Sevilla side knocked Manchester United out of the Champions League last week, was not named on the three-man shortlist revealed by Italian Football Federation (FIGC) vice-commissioner Alessandro Costacurta.
Chelsea s Antonio Conte is Costacurta s top target, with interim coach Luigi Di Biagio and Zenit s Roberto Mancini also in the running.
Di Biagio is taking charge of Italy s upcoming friendly matches against Argentina and England, stepping up from his role as Under-21 coach.
Regardless of not being mentioned by Costacurta, former Italy international Montella has indicated he would find the job hard to turn down if he was offered the c…
Liverpool have insisted Luis Suarez will stay at the club despite comments from the striker indicating he is ready to leave.
The former Ajax forward has caused much controversy since his move to Merseyside, and sparked further outrage by biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic in a Premier League match in April.
Suarez was banned by the FA for 10 matches following the incident and this week indicated that he wants a transfer, with the media attention surrounding him and his family the primary reason for his decision.
However, the Anfield outfit stressed they are not looking to sell the Uruguay international, adding that Suarez has not informed the club of his wish to leave.
A Liverpool spokesperson said: Luis Suarez is not for sale. Neither Luis or his representatives …
Former midfielder Paul Scholes said he fears Manchester United could spiral into obscurity if they do not arrest their decline.
After romping home to win the 2012-13 Premier League title, United uncharacteristically finished seventh last season, with manager David Moyes losing his job as a result.
Dutchman Louis van Gaal has since taken charge of first-team affairs but old habits were evident at Old Trafford as United lost their Premier League opener 2-1 to Swansea City.
And Scholes an 11-time Premier League winner with the club believes United could continue to decline just like arch-rivals Liverpool did in the 1990s, having claimed the 1989-90 top-flight title before managing to earn just four runner-up medals in 24 seasons since.
Liverpool also finishe…
Scottish Football Association (SFA) chief executive Gordon Smith refused to back manager George Burley s decision to drop Barry Ferguson and Allan McGregor for Wednesday s World Cup qualifier against Iceland here at Hampden Park, saying instead it would be reviewed.
Amid reports the Rangers duo had stayed up drinking into the early hours at the team hotel after the squad s return from a 3-0 defeat by Holland on Saturday, an SFA spokesman confirmed a breach of team discipline had taken place.
But although Ferguson and McGregor were left out of the starting line-up, several hours later the SFA announced they would be both on the bench for what is a must-win game for Scotland if they are to maintain realistic hopes of qualifying for next year s World Cup in South Africa.<…
South Korea s Pohang Steelers came from behind to book their place in the knockout rounds of the AFC Champions League on Tuesday, where they were joined by Japan s Kashima Antlers.
Pohang beat Australia s Central Coast Mariners 3-2 to line up alongside Japan s Kawasaki Frontale in the last 16 from Group H. Defending champions Gamba Osaka and Uzbek giants Pakhtakor are the other teams already through.
A Denilson hat-trick did the job for Pohang, with the winner coming a minute from time.
His early penalty sent the home side on their way, but Adam Kwasnik scored twice for the Mariners in four second-half minutes.
Denilson, though, struck twice more inside the last 19 minutes to crush Australian dreams.
The victory extinguished any faint hopes that …
The United States dominated possession against Jamaica but had to wait until the closing minutes for the goal which secured a 1-0 win and sent them through to the CONCACAF Gold Cup semi-finals.
Matthew Hoppe scored for the first time on the international stage in the 83rd minute to seal victory at AT T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
The USA move on to face Qatar in Thursday s semi-final in Austin. Earlier on Sunday, Canada defeated Costa Rica 2-0 to book a place in the other semi against Mexico.
Though it took some time for the young USA side to find the net, it was another encouraging result for head coach Gregg Berhalter.
FULL TIME! s first international goal pushes the into the Semifinals!
— U.S. Soccer MNT (@USMNT)
Wit…
Cody Gakpo has claimed Manchester United are a serious option as the transfer window draws to a close.
The window shuts on Thursday, with United set to be one of the busier clubs.
Erik ten Hag s side are reportedly closing in on the signing of Ajax forward Antony, which could see them splash out £85million (€100m) on the 22-year-old.
Gakpo has also been mentioned as a target, with the winger – who plays for Ajax s rivals PSV – possessing a similar style to Antony.
On Sunday, Gakpo provided a timely reminder of his quality with two assists and a goal in a 6-1 rout of Excelsior, and subsequently suggested United are still interested in his services.
ANOTHER ONE, GAKPO! 0-5
— PSV (@PSV)
The 23-year-old also claimed Unit…
Paris Saint-Germain have been part of the transfer rumour mills mostly for their biggest stars Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, Edinson Cavani and Mauro Icardi. Now that slowly becomes clear which of those players will stay and which will leave, it looks like the champions of France are looking elsewhere for more signings.
According to Sky Sport in Italy, PSG are eager to sign Lucas Paqueta from AC Milan. The Brazilian is only 22 years old and he joined Milan in January 2019, but just 12 months later there is a possibility for him to move to France. He has played a limited role for Milan this season and Rossoneri might be inclined to try and get the money they have spent on him, especially considering huge losses the club have made in recent years.
Milan signed Paqueta for around…
Frenkie de Jong is relishing his chance to extend Barcelona s Dutch connection after arriving at Camp Nou.
The former Ajax midfielder was formally presented as a Barcelona player on Friday, and the 22-year-old is primed to be a key figure in the club s future.
Barca have close ties to Netherlands, largely because of their association with the late Dutch great Johan Cruyff, a superstar player and highly successful head coach of the Catalan club and Ajax.
The Cruyff traditions have sustained, and De Jong is sure he will fit in at Barcelona because of that factor.
He said: Netherlands and Barca have always had a good connection, and Barca and Ajax have a very similar way of playing, with the philosophy of Johan Cruyff. Ajax and Barca want to play in the same…
Kaka, Andrea Pirlo, David Villa, Steven Gerrard, Didier Drogba, Frank Lampard and Sebastian Giovinco an illustrious group headlining the ever-growing star power of Major League Soccer.
And Orlando City captain and Brazil international Kaka expects more big names to swap Europe for the United States.
One of football s greatest players, Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid, and Manchester United recruit Zlatan Ibrahimovic have publicly declared their interest in moving to MLS in the future.
In an interview with Omnisport, 2007 Ballon d Or winner Kaka said: In my opinion, we will see a lot more players come to join the league because every year it is improving.
Probably we will see in a few years more players, big players from Europe, coming to play in MLS.