Wolfsburg coach Dieter Hecking labelled his side s win over Inter as a big step in their development, as they advanced to the last eight of the UEFA Europa League on Thursday.
While Wolfsburg s starting line-up included the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Diego Benaglio and Luiz Gustavo, who all played at last year s World Cup, Hecking insisted his team are not that experienced .
In that light, Hecking hailed Wolfsburg s 2-1 triumph in Milan as a huge result, as they cruised past Inter 5-2 on aggregate to reach the Europa League quarter-finals.
Wolfsburg last appeared in a continental competition in 2009-10 when they finished third in their UEFA Champions League group and were eliminated by Fulham in the Europa League quarter-finals.
I think that even though …
Swansea City captain Ashley Williams feels like he has lost a mate with the sacking of manager Garry Monk.
Williams and Monk were together at Swansea since 2008, initially as team-mates before the latter took the reins as manager.
In 2013, the duo was part of the team that lifted the League Cup.
However, a run of one win in 11 Premier League games brought the professional relationship to an end when Monk was sacked last week.
As captain and a personal friend of Monk s, Williams said the sacking had hit him particularly hard.
It s been even more difficult than a normal kind of situation because he s a mate you feel like you have let him down, Williams told BBC Radio.
Then he goes so you have lost a mate that you see every day. It s just t…
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West Ham and Tottenham meet for the second time this month with a place in the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup up for grabs. Mauricio Pochettino is preparing his side for an eight-day period that could define Tottenham’s season.
West Ham
Starting with Wednesday s hosts, after slumping to a 1-0 loss at home to Tottenham last week, the Hammers are now without a win since their 3-2 victory over Manchester United last month. With Leicester s Wilfred Ndidi scoring the 89th-minute equalizer at the King Power on Sunday, it has been their form in the final third that will be a huge concern for Manuel Pellegrini. With top goalscorerMarko Arnautović missing last weekend s 1-1 draw with the Foxes, West Ham have …
Manchester City are set to bid just £20m for Arsenal forward Alexis Sanchez when the transfer window reopens in January, according to the Mail Online.
The Citizens had been strongly linked with a move for the Chile international during the summer with a proposed transfer worth £60m collapsing on deadline day due to the Gunners not bringing a replacement in in time.
The 28 year old is currently in the final of his contract, and just six months will remain on that deal in January so City will attempt to bid just a third of their initial offer as they look to finally get their man.
Sanchez worked with Pep Guardiola at Barcelona during the 2011/12 campaign when together they won the Copa Del Rey and finished as runners-up in La Liga.
He has racked up …
Aston Villa defender Aly Cissokho has joined Primeira Liga side Porto on a season-long loan deal.
The France international spent half a season at Porto in 2009 before earning a move to Lyon, which was followed by spells at Valencia and Liverpool.
After a year s loan at Anfield, Cissokho joined Villa on a four-year deal in August 2014 but seemingly does not feature in Tim Sherwood s plans at Villa Park.
Cissokho will link up with Julen Lopetegui s squad at the Estadio do Dragao, with Porto having also brought in Pablo Daniel Osvaldo on Wednesday.
Porto have also signed the likes of Giannelli Imbula, Iker Casillas and Alberto Bueno during the close-season as they seek to challenge champions Benfica for the title.
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Marcelo thanked Jose Mourinho for the impact he had on his career while at Real Madrid and saluted the great coach following his sacking by Manchester United.
The Portuguese manager was dismissed by United on Tuesday following a dismal start to the 2018-19 season, which has seen the club fall 19 points behind Premier League pacesetters Liverpool.
Mourinho s last game charge was the 3-1 defeat to the Reds at Anfield on Sunday, as United produced a dire performance and hardly offered any attacking threat.
Recent speculation has suggested Mourinho could be lined up to take charge at Madrid at the end of the season, returning following his dismissal in 2013 after three years at the helm.
Although Marcelo thanked Mourinho for helping shape the left-back s care…
Argentina will be without Carlos Tevez as well as Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero for their crunch World Cup qualifier against Brazil on Thursday.
South America s footballing giants clash in a competitive fixture for the first time since 2009 in Buenos Aires this week, with both having made slow starts to their qualifying campaigns.
Gerardo Martino s Argentina have taken just a point from games against Ecuador and Paraguay, while Brazil overcame Venezuela last time out after losing to Copa America winners Chile in their opening match.
Messi missed both of Argentina s first two games due to a knee injury, and Martino will once again have to make do without his captain and talisman against Brazil, while Aguero is also sidelined with the hamstring injury he picked …
Thomas Tuchel was unimpressed by the performance of Romelu Lukaku after Chelsea lost 1-0 to Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
A stunning goal from Kevin De Bruyne sent Pep Guardiola s City 13 points clear of Chelsea in the Premier League table, with the Blues having won just four of their last 12 league games.
Lukaku cut a lone figure for much of Saturday s game, having just 21 touches – the fewest of any starting player for either team – while completing just seven out of 12 passes, and he did not win any of his seven aerial duels.
He also saw a shot saved by City goalkeeper Ederson when through one-on-one at the start of the second half, a chance that Opta measured with an xG (expected goals) score of 0.365, meaning that he would be expected to sco…
Samuel Eto o is in no doubt that Neymar will be the best player in the world once Barcelona team-mate Lionel Messi and Real Madrid forward Cristiano Ronaldo are past their peak.
The trio make up the shortlist for the 2015 FIFA Ballon d Or, an accolade which the Argentine and the Portuguese have dominated for the past seven years.
Former Barcelona and Madrid forward Eto o is confident if Neymar applies himself appropriately, he will be the sport s leading performer in the future.
Neymar has a lot of potential. After the era of Messi and Cristiano, surely he will be number one, Eto o, who played for Barca between 2004 and 2009, told ESPN Brasil.
But he has to remember that it depends on him a lot. He must remember that he hast the talent and needs to t…
Guus Hiddink has challenged Chelsea to step up their defensive efforts as they look to extend their dominant record against Arsenal on Sunday.
The champions are unbeaten in the Premier League since the 2-1 reverse to Leicester City in December, though they have conceded five goals in consecutive draws with West Brom and Everton.
Arsene Wenger s side who head into the weekend top of the table have not beaten Chelsea since October 2011 in the top flight and have gone more than eight hours without a goal in that run.
And Hiddink has demanded an improved defensive display from his side as they aim to preserve that recent record and inflict a first home league defeat on the Gunners in 10 matches.
It s not just a matter of the four defenders, nowadays if you d…