New Watford manager Walter Mazzarri says avoiding relegation is the primary target ahead of his first season in English football.
The 54-year-old, who led Napoli to their first major trophy in more than two decades by winning the 2011-12 Coppa Italia, replaced Quique Sanchez Flores in the Vicarage Road hotseat this summer and will be aiming to build on the club s impressive first season back in the top flight.
However, the former Sampdoria and Inter coach, Watford s seventh manager in just five seasons, admits that securing survival will be the main aim for his first managerial appointment outside of his native Italy.
The first objective is to stay in the Premier League, Mazzarri said via a translator in his pre-match news conference ahead of Watford s opening…
Liverpool have enquired about Lyon midfielder Arnold Mvuemba, according to the player s official representative.
The 28-year-old has largely struggled to prove his worth since joining les Gones from Lorient and he continues to be linked with a move away from the club.
The former Portsmouth midfielder has failed to make a single league appearance in over three months and chances are he will be leaving Stade Gerland in the January window.
According to his agent, Premier League high-flyers Liverpool are one of the sides showing interest in Mvuemba.
“Arnold played for Portsmouth, even won the Cup and is well known in the English league, where he left a good impression,” agent Fleury Di Nallo explained to Progres.
“The Liverpool chairman showed …
Hasan Salihamidzic is to be promoted to Bayern Munich s executive board from July 2020, the club have confirmed.
The former Bayern midfielder was appointed as the club s sporting director in July 2017 and he was influential in the signings of Lucas Hernandez, Benjamin Pavard and Alphonso Davies.
Bayern s supervisory board met on Monday and an official statement Die Roten s official website confirmed Salihamidzic is to be board director for sport.
At today s meeting, the Supervisory Board of FC Bayern Munchen AG considered the personnel matter of Hasan Salihamidzic, the statement read.
Hasan Salihamidzic has been the FC Bayern Sporting Director since summer 2017 and has done an outstanding job during this time.
This applies not only to first…
Usain Bolt said he was not used to the changeable pace of top-level football as he prepares to play his first game for Central Coast Mariners.
The eight-time Olympic gold medallist sprinter is on an open-ended trial at the A-League club and he is set to make his first appearance when the Mariners take on a local amateur team on Friday.
Bolt, who played a friendly during a trial with Norwegian side Stromsgodset earlier in the year, admitted he would be nervous as he took another step towards his dream of being a professional footballer.
There will be nerves, the 100m world record holder told reporters.
First team training and press conference with the
— Usain St. Leo Bolt (@usainbolt)
It s not like it is a charity game anymore, …
A three-day rest clearly did the trick for Manchester City, as they thrashed Leicester City 5-1 thanks to four goals from Sergio Aguero and a treble of Kevin De Bruyne assists to go 16 points clear at the Premier League summit.
Much of the build-up was dominated by Riyad Mahrez s return to Leicester s squad after missing 10 days of training in response to not securing a move to the hosts, but he was benched as City – who were afforded a few days off beforehand – ultimately cruised, with De Bruyne and Aguero stealing the show.
Although City enjoyed an electric start, going ahead in the third minute thanks to Raheem Sterling s 15th league goal of the season, they appeared to lack a little sharpness in the first half.
And a Nicolas Otamendi error 24 minutes in …
Roberto Mancini says Italy must take some time to reflect and work towards the future after they failed to qualify for a second consecutive World Cup.
The Azzurri will not feature in the tournament in Qatar this year after suffering a sensational 1-0 play-off defeat to North Macedonia on Thursday.
Italy won Euro 2020 by beating England on penalties in the final at Wembley last July, but suffered heartbreak in Palermo this week.
Mancini s future has been called into question in certain quarters, but the head coach says it is important to look at where his side felt short and put the agony behind them.
He posted on Instagram: Sometimes football can be a ruthless metaphor for life.
Last summer we were on the top of Europe after having completed on…
Chelsea striker Timo Werner s dismal run in front of goal continued in their Premier League defeat to Arsenal on Saturday.
The Germany international was substituted by head coach Frank Lampard at half-time against the Gunners which took his run of matches without scoring to 10 games in all competitions.
That drought is his longest since a run of 12 matches between March and September 2016 across spells at Stuttgart and RB Leipzig.
Werner failed to register a shot on target against Arsenal and had just two touches inside the penalty area before he was replaced by Callum Hudson-Odoi during the 3-1 defeat.
Signed for a reported £47.5million from RB Leipzig ahead of the 2020-21 season, Werner has scored just four goals in 15 Premier League games.
W…
Mauricio Pochettino is yet to decide whether Christian Eriksen will start for Tottenham in their Champions League game with PSV on Wednesday.
Eriksen returned after missing four club matches in Spurs Premier League win over London rivals West Ham on Saturday, making a brief cameo from the bench.
But the Denmark international may be benched again when Spurs take on PSV in Group B, with both teams yet to win a point after two rounds of games.
Pochettino confirmed he will be without Jan Vertonghen (hamstring) and Danny Rose (groin), with Dele Alli (hamstring) also unavailable despite returning to training.
I think Danny Rose, Dele Alli and Jan Vertonghen are still out, Pochettino told reporters.
Christian Eriksen is fit to be selected and we ll see…
Robert Lewandowski has admitted it s very hard for him at the moment to imagine Robert Lewandowski staying at Bayern Munich past this summer.
The future of the Poland captain has been an object of a proper saga over the last few months. He s been told by the Bundesliga champions to stay put and they insist they ve made and offer to extend his contract, which is currently set to expire in the summer of 2023. Barcelona are believed to be making a strong effort to lure him to the Camp Nou, but Bayern have so far resisted as well as they re able.
Nonetheless, it seems the 33-year-old striker, who scored 34 goals in 33 Bundesliga appearances in 2021-22, has no intention of signing a new contract with Bayern.
“Barca move? It depends on several factors, Lewandowski t…
Timo Werner has thanked Chelsea supporters for rallying behind him after being told to get out of the club by a fan during an open training session.
Chelsea s players were put through their paces at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, with those in attendance also getting a first glimpse of striker Romelu Lukaku up close since he rejoined the club last week.
But the event was somewhat overshadowed during a question-and-answer session with fans when one urged Werner to leave the club.
The comment was made over the PA system and prompted an angry response from others in the stands.
Werner was later inundated with positive messages on social media and expressed his gratitude to those who had reached out.
Thanks for all the love and support I received tod…