Juventus lost their first Serie A game of the season as Stefano Sturaro and Goran Pandev sealed a memorable 2-0 win for Genoa at Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Sunday.
Genoa activated their obligation to buy Sturaro from Juventus for €16.5million in February, less than two weeks after he joined on loan and he marked his first appearance of his second spell with the opener after 72 minutes.
That was followed nine minutes from time by Pandev s fine strike past Mattia Perin to secure a deserved victory for the hosts.
Cristiano Ronaldo was rested after his midweek heroics against Atletico Madrid and Juve sorely missed his attacking threat in what was an insipid display.
Full-Time a Marassi. Il Genoa vince il Lunch Game.
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc)
Manchester City have been on a different planet to anybody else in the Premier League for most of the campaign. One of their star players Belgian international Kevin De Bruyne was rightly considered a contender for Player of the Year award, won by Liverpool’s Egyptian star Mohamed Salah.
However, for me, Spanish attacking midfielder David Silva seems to go unnoticed in that Citizens midfield. Maybe because the likes of De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Leroy Sane have shined that Silva’s contribution is overshadowed.
Impressive stats this season
Silva has once again been an attacking force to be reckoned with in whatever position in the team he has played. This season the 32-year-old has scored nine top-flight goals, while also producing 11 assists. Those are impressi…
New FIFA president Gianni Infantino won a mandate to implement his election manifesto when he triumphed in the second round of voting at the extraordinary congree in Zurich on Friday.
But what will this mean for global football and its world governing body?
Infantino s pre-election pledges are divided into three key pillars of reform, democracy and participation, and football development.
Here Omnisport assesses the flagship policies of the man who served as UEFA general secretary from 2009 and how they will guide his reforms of the embattled organisation as he takes over from Sepp Blatter.
I: Reform and Good Governance
Infantino s first pillar is largely aligned with the FIFA reform package passed by an 89 per cent majority earlier at …
Lautaro Martinez and Giovani Lo Celso were on target for Argentina as they downed Venezuela 2-0 to set up a mouth-watering Copa America semi-final against hosts Brazil.
Martinez s instinctive 10th-minute finish was his sixth goal in 10 international appearances and due reward as Lionel Scaloni s men made a rapid start.
They faded during the second half but Lo Celso capitalised upon an error from Venezuela goalkeeper Wuilker Farinez to settle matters at the Maracana the stadium where Argentina lost the 2014 World Cup final to Germany.
It means Lionel Messi s ambitions of a first international title remain on track, with Argentina s bitterest rivals now standing in his way.
Martinez displayed his burgeoning understanding with Sergio Aguero in attack by play…
Yussuf Poulsen bounced back from conceding a first-half penalty to score the decisive goal in Demark s 1-0 victory over Peru in their World Cup Group C opener.
The RB Leipzig forward was deemed to have tripped Christian Cueva in the box when referee Bakary Gassama consulted VAR, but the Peru midfielder skied his spot-kick and left the field in tears at the end of a tense opening period.
Denmark settled into the game after the interval and the talismanic Christian Eriksen provided Poulsen with a chance to turn his evening around in the 59th minute, and the 24-year-old made no mistake.
Paolo Guerrero came on from the bench following a successful appeal to suspend his 14-month drug ban cleared him to feature, but he could not turn the game in Peru s favour.
Aaron Ramsey confessed he was a bit starstruck by the presence of high-profile names when he joined Arsenal from Cardiff City at the tender age of 17.
Ramsey joined the likes of Robin van Persie, Samir Nasri and Cesc Fabregas in north London in 2008 as a promising youngster who had yet to prove himself at the highest level.
Having overcome feelings of disbelief upon meeting such esteemed players, the Wales international feels a lot has changed over the past eight years.
As soon as I came in on the first day I was a bit starstruck with all the faces there, some of the biggest players in world football, Ramsey told the club s official website.
I am sure they were all thinking, Who is this guy coming in? and it was nerve-wracking going around and intr…
It was a day to forget for defending champions Germany as they were unceremoniously dumped out of the World Cup following defeat to South Korea.
Joachim Low s side were beaten 2-0 in Kazan on Wednesday, leaving them bottom of Group F with three points from their three matches.
While Sweden and Mexico celebrated progression to the knockout stages, and Korea revelled in a memorable victory, Germany were left downbeat.
The post-match data made for miserable reading for fans on Die Mannschaft, here we take a look at the Opta facts that Low will be keen to avoid.
Complete list of World Cups featuring both England Germany where England will have played more games than Germany:
2018
— Duncan Alexander (@oilysailor)
Germany are the fou…
Speculation that Ernesto Valverde might become the next head coach of Barcelona is nothing new for the Athletic Bilbao boss.
In the aftermath of the Spanish champions thrashing Sporting Gijon on Wednesday, current boss Luis Enrique announced he would stand down when his contract expires at the end of this season.
Valverde, who played for the Camp Nou club between 1988 and 1990, was mentioned in dispatches around the Barcelona job either side of Pep Guardiola s glorious 2008-2012 reign and after his late successor Tito Vilanova stood down due to ill health.
The 53-year-old s impressive job since rejoining Athletic for a second spell in 2013 – he also boasts two stints at Greek giants Olympiacos and tenures with Espanyol, Villarreal and Valencia – has done noth…
Former England midfielder Jill Scott believes the Lionesses can win the Women’s World Cup and says Sarina Wiegman’s side will be the best-prepared team at the tournament in Australia and New Zealand.
The 36-year-old Euro 2022 winner praised the “humble” squad ahead of their Group D opener against Haiti on July 22 and insists she will have no problem being a pundit this time instead of a player.
She said: “I’ve watched the Lionesses a few times as a player since I’ve retired – they were too fast for me, and too good!”
Scott, who won ITV’s I’m a Celebrity last year after retiring, continued: “We’ve got a great group of girls – grounded, humble, but also incredible players.
“I think it’ll be the best-prepared team going out to…
Tributes have been paid to former Swansea City and Arsenal great Mel Charles, who has died at the age of 81.
Charles, who played as a defender and a striker, spent seven years with Swansea before joining the Gunners in 1959 for a reported fee of £46,750 a record for a transfer between two British clubs at the time.
He also earned 31 caps for Wales and was part of the side that reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup in 1958, with Brazil great Pele reportedly describing him as the best defender he faced during the tournament.
It s a sad, sad loss, Swansea coach Alan Curtis told the club s official website. Mel was part of a huge sporting family in Swansea.
Not only was he highly respected as a footballer, he was a fantastic character who enjoyed l…