Gonzalo Higuain emotional after final match as professional footballer (Video)

Luciano Spalletti warned Napoli cannot think they have already reached the Champions League quarter-finals despite a dominant victory over Eintracht Frankfurt.

The Serie A leaders cruised to a 2-0 victory at Deutsche Bank Park as Victor Osimhen and Giovanni Di Lorenzo netted against Eintracht, who had Randal Kolo Muani sent off in the second half.

Napoli have never made it to the Champions League last eight but are in control of their last-16 tie ahead of the return meeting in Naples on March 15.

Spalletti refused to rest on his laurels, though, as he insisted nothing has been achieved just yet.

Asked if Napoli and Real Madrid, who smashed Liverpool 5-2 at Anfield in Tuesday s other clash, were favourites, Spalletti responded: Will we be able to repeat it…

Manchester City may have progressed to the Champions League quarter-finals after a 7-0 thrashing of RB Leipzig but it was their local rivals who got one over on Pep Guardiola.

Erling Haaland was the leading light with five goals as City secured an 8-1 aggregate victory over Leipzig but it was Guardiola s post-match comments that caught the eye.

The City manager revealed he will always feel like a failure after he failed to meet one of his idols – Hollywood A-lister Julia Roberts – when she came to visit Manchester in 2016.

In a bizarre twist to his press conference, Guardiola explained his hurt over the fact Roberts had slept with the enemy.

She came in the period when we were better than United, these four or five years, he said.

And she w…

Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou has tried to temper expectations after he insisted nothing magical would happen in the January transfer window for his injury-hit side.

Spurs’ mini-revival hit a major speed bump on Thursday night after they were blown away in a 4-2 defeat by Brighton.

Nine players were unavailable for Postecoglou and he will lose the suspended Yves Bissouma, Pape Sarr and captain Son Heung-min for January due to international commitments after Sunday’s clash with Bournemouth.

While a centre-back is top of the club’s wish list and the PA news agency understands talks are under way with Nice over defender Jean-Clair Todibo, Postecoglou played down any assumption that a flurry of activity would occur in N17.

“Nothing magical’s going…

Napoli manager Luciano Spalletti is set to leave the club after guiding them to their first Serie A title in 33 years.

President Aurelio De Laurentiis said that the 64-year-old, who took over the Partenopei in 2021, has asked to take a sabbatical and will leave the club with a year left on his contract.

“He’s a free man, now it’s right that he continues to do what he wants. I thank him,” De Laurentiis told Italian broadcaster Rai as reported by Sky Italy.

Napoli clinched their first title since 1990, when Diego Maradona led them to the Scudetto, with five games to spare.

Spalletti’s final game in charge is set to be at home to Sampdoria next Sunday.

Reports in Italy suggest Napoli will attempt to bring in former Barcelona and Spain head …

Thibault Courtois clean sheet against Liverpool has the Real Madrid goalkeeper anticipating a Champions League semi-final reunion with Chelsea in search of silverware.

After Madrid held Liverpool to a goalless draw on Wednesday, the LaLiga champions progressed to the semi-finals for the first time since 2018 via a 3-1 aggregate success.

Madrid will now face Thomas Tuchel s Chelsea for a spot in the decider – Los Blancos have qualified for the semis of the European Cup/Champions League for the 30th time, at least 10 more than any other team.

We came into today off the back of two really difficult games and maybe we just lacked the legs in attack but defensively we ran as if we had twelve men on the pitch, Courtois said.

It was unbelievable. Everyone ha…

Eberechi Eze believes his injury nightmare two years ago gave him the platform for England recognition.

The Crystal Palace midfielder is eyeing a senior debut after being included in Gareth Southgate’s squad for the Euro 2024 qualifiers against Malta and North Macedonia.

The call came after Eze was named in England’s provisional Euro 2020 squad in May 2021 – only for a serious Achilles injury on the same day to wreck his dreams.

His has fought back and insists his six months on the sidelines only gave him strength and confidence in his ability.

— Crystal Palace F.C. (@CPFC)

Eze said: “I know without setbacks and difficult moments it’s hard to grow and be the person I am today. I look back at those memories fondly because I k…

Market: West Brom draw no bet

Odds: 8/15 @

In what is a real Midlands derby on Friday night, Birmingham will welcome West Brom to St. Andrew s for what could be a fiery affair.

Starting with the hosts, while Birmingham might have shown some extended inconsistencies this season, the Blues are coming off the back of a thrilling display away from St. Andrew s. Mounting a stunning last-gasp comeback against Swansea as they eventually snatched a 4-3 victory in south Wales, John Eustace will be desperate for his side to build on that performance. However, despite claiming just their second win from their previous nine domestic showdowns across all formats, the one-time Premier League outfit have continued to show a host of issues on home soil. Almost finding themselve…

Widespread concern met the decision for Denmark and Finland to return to the pitch less than two hours after Christian Eriksen had first collapsed in Copenhagen on Saturday.

An alarming incident prompted serious fears for Eriksen s life, fears that were eased but not eradicated by positive updates on the midfielder s condition.

For those watching from afar, the swift restart could not have been anticipated. There was wonder instead for how Belgium and Russia could possibly play later.

The Belgium squad features Eriksen s Inter team-mate Romelu Lukaku and long-term Ajax and Tottenham colleagues Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen.

But, sure enough, confirmation was forthcoming of the resumption in Group B s first fixture, set for 20:30 CET, with Belgium s…

Getafe are interested in prolonging the stay of Manchester United loanee Mason Greenwood at the Estadio Coliseum, according to . The La Liga are willing to explore options for making the transfer permanent, but at this point, it is believed another loan deal would be easier to do.

United suspended Greenwood back in January 2022 following accusations of attempted rape, coercion and assault, which were eventually dropped due to a withdrawal of key witnesses from the proceedings. The 22-year-old forward joined Getafe on a temporary basis in September last year, scoring seven goals and producing five assists in 22 appearances in all competitions since.

As for United, Sir Jim Ratcliffe recently addressed the issue of Greenwood, saying that a decision on the future of the pla…

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The international break is upon us as we gear up for the first set of fixtures at this level since the World Cup last winter. The primary focus will now be on UEFA Euro 2024, with the road to qualification beginning over the course of the next few days. Today, we ll take a look at what should be an incredibly competitive encounter as Spain and Norway begin their journey to try and reach Germany next year.

Spain

It was another similar story for Spain at the 2022 World Cup. They showed great promise and had a few tremendous results, but they ultimately couldn t get themselves over the finish line. Oh, and as has been the case so often since their golden era came to an end, they were knocked out by a side th…