Aliou Cisse concedes Senegal will be without their best player heading into the World Cup but insists his squad are ready for the challenge .
The African champions suffered the crushing news that star man Sadio Mane would miss the tournament after having to undergo surgery on a fibula injury sustained in Bayern Munich s 6-1 thrashing of Werder Bremen 12 days ago.
Mane s importance to Senegal is highlighted by the fact he has been involved in 12 of the last 25 goals scored by Cisse’s team in the finals of either the World Cup or Africa Cup of Nations.
And his absence has forced a tactical re-think ahead of Monday s opener against the Netherlands at the Al Thumama Stadium in Doha.
Cisse said: Obviously it s a great shame for Sadio and the team, but we hav…
Jarrod Bowen and Mohammed Kudus consigned makeshift Manchester United to another defeat as West Ham snatched a 2-0 victory at the London Stadium.
England hopeful Bowen scored his 12th goal of the season and Ghana winger Kudus his seventh in 12 appearances as United were sent spinning to a 20th loss of 2023, their worst tally in 34 years.
For 72 minutes two poor teams were cancelling each other out in a dreadful spectacle until Bowen broke the deadlock.
And six minutes later Kudus added a second which, while flattering West Ham, condemned United to a 13th defeat in their last 26 matches.
With Victor Lindelof, Harry Maguire, Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane all absent, United boss Erik Ten Hag was forced to draft 19-year-old Willy Kambwala in at centre-…
Fulham hit five goals for the second time in a week as they thrashed West Ham at Craven Cottage to move into the top half of the Premier League.
The floodgates have certainly opened for the Whites in recent weeks, with David Moyes’ men the latest side to be put to the sword as five different scorers struck in a fine 5-0 home win – just four days after Fulham beat Nottingham Forest by the same scoreline.
Raul Jimenez opened the scoring to take his personal tally to four in five games having previously not scored a Premier League goal since March 2022, when he was a Wolves player.
Willian and Tosin Adarabioyo goals then had the hosts coasting at the break before a fine effort from substitute Harry Wilson and late effort from Carlos Vinicius added the gloss.
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Joe Willock has claimed a piece of Premier League history by scoring for a sixth consecutive Newcastle United appearance.
The on-loan Arsenal midfielder headed Steve Bruce s men into a 1-0 lead on the stroke of half-time against relegated Sheffield United on Wednesday.
At 21 years and 272 days, Willock is the youngest player to score in six straight games in the competition.
He also puts himself in illustrious company as far as Newcastle are concerned. The only two other players to have netted for six appearances in a row for the Magpies are Alan Shearer in 1996 and Papiss Cisse in 2012.
Willock will have the opportunity to make it a magnificent seven when Newcastle travel to Fulham on the final day of the season.
21y 272d Joe Willock has now sco…
Rafael Benitez says he would like to go back to the Premier League in the future but insists there is no chance of an imminent return.
The Spaniard left Newcastle United following the expiry of his contract at the end of June before joining Chinese Super League club Dalian Yifang – a move Magpies managing director, Lee Charnley, said was motivated by money.
Everton and Arsenal are in the market for new managers after recently sacking Marco Silva and Unai Emery respectively, while West Ham boss Manuel Pellegrini is under intense pressure.
Benitez says he remains open to a return to the English top flight but has no intention of leaving China just yet.
Obviously in the future I would like to come back to the Premier League, but at the moment I must be v…
Marc Cucurella says Chelsea need stability if they want to find success, comparing it to Spain s Euro 2024 triumph.
Enzo Maresca became the Blues seventh permanent manager in the last eight years in July, taking over from Mauricio Pochettino, who only spent one season at Stamford Bridge.
Chelsea began the season with a defeat to Manchester City before getting their first Premier League victory under the Italian in a 6-2 thrashing of Wolves.
While they followed that up with a draw, Maresca has already started to stamp his mark on the squad, with a blend of his new signings and the youngsters brought in by previous managers.
And Cucurella believes that keeping him for the long term will allow Chelsea to find a necessary rhythm so they can start to target si…
Gareth Southgate s decision to stay on as England manager has been welcomed by Gary Neville, who believes the Three Lions can win a tournament under his watch.
Southgate said he would take time to consider his future after England s 2-1 defeat against France in the World Cup quarter-finals last week.
That loss represented the latest in a series of near misses for Southgate s Three Lions, who squandered early leads in the 2018 World Cup semi-finals and the final of Euro 2020.
However, Sunday brought confirmation Southgate would remain in post until at least the end of Euro 2024 – his contract expires soon after that tournament – and Neville is pleased with the decision.
I think it s the right decision, former England right-back Neville told Sky Sports…
Manchester United s decision to sack Jose Mourinho has left them with two positions to fill.
The club have already stated they will name a temporary manager until the end of the season, giving them time to find a full-time successor.
The short-term role is a difficult one, as they will need to provide stability to a fractured dressing room while knowing the club are lining up someone else behind the scenes.
It is likely to be someone with a connection to the club. Here, we consider five men who could take over at Old Trafford on a deal until June 2019.
Laurent Blanc
Mourinho s power struggle with Paul Pogba has been a near-constant soap opera ever since the France midfielder arrived at United for what was a world record £89million in August 2016. …
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In what could be an action-packed Champions League showdown on Wednesday night, Barcelona will make the trip over to Italy when they meet Napoli.
Napoli
Starting with the hosts, while Napoli might have made real Serie A history last season as they claimed a first domestic crown since 1990, the Azzuri have come crashing back down to earth this time around. Failing to pick up any kind of momentum over the weekend as they had to settle for a 1-1 stalemate at home against Genoa, it is no secret that Walter Mazzarri has a huge amount of pressure on his shoulders. Coming under a ton of scrutiny this year and remarkably holding just a three-point buffer from slipping out the top-half of the Serie A table, the former Watford boss has seen his …
Barcelona defender Dani Alves said there is no such thing as luck as he saluted fierce rivals Real Madrid s remarkable late comeback win against Manchester City.
The Spanish champions edged an epic semi-final with City 6-5 on aggregate on Wednesday to set up a showdown with Liverpool – a repeat of the 2018 final – in Paris on May 28.
Rodrygo scored twice in the space of 91 seconds to salvage extra time for Madrid, who trailed 5-3 on aggregate with less than a minute of normal time remaining.
Karim Benzema s penalty in the additional period sealed Los Blancos passage through to a record-extending 17th European Cup/Champions League final, which is six more than any other team.
It is the third knockout round in a row that Carlo Ancelotti s men, who secur…