Ronaldo and Bale return to Madrid training

While England might have been handed a golden chance in Qatar this winter after watching the likes of Brazil, Spain and Portugal all fall to the wayside, the Three Lions suffered more World Cup heartbreak in Qatar.

Eventually slumping to a against defending champions and fellow European heavyweights France on Saturday night, Gareth Southgate once again finds a huge amount of pressure on his shoulders.

Yet to claim another piece of international silverware since 1966 and falling at the final hurdle in last year s European Championship final against Italy, many have speculated that Southgate will be on his way out.

Suffering a Nations League nightmare earlier in the year as they lost their League A status, the 52-year-old has gained a string of critics for his pr…

Hansi Flick said record-breaker Robert Lewandowski s achievements illustrated the quality of his Bayern Munich team-mates, as the coach reflected on an emotional final game in charge.

Lewandowski scored with the last touch of the game in Saturday s 5-2 win over Augsburg in the champions Bundesliga finale.

It gave the prolific Pole a 41st league goal of the season, meaning he surpassed fellow Bayern legend Gerd Muller for the most goals scored in a single Bundesliga campaign.

Lewandowski had endured a frustrating outing to that point but celebrated with an emotional embrace with Flick.

Speaking after the game, Lewandowski was keen to pay tribute to his fellow Bayern stars, a sentiment shared by Flick.

Speaking to Sky Germany, Flick said: We win …

Ambitious plans have been unveiled by the Football Association and Women’s Super League for England to boast the first billion-pound league structure in women’s football.

A month on from the Lionesses’ reaching a second consecutive major final, the finer details on independent company NewCo, a crucial next step in the development of the women’s game, are drawing to a conclusion.

The FA currently owns the WSL and Women’s Championship, but this will change going into the 2024-25 campaign when NewCo take over the running of the two divisions, which will result in a restructure of power in a move similar to the Premier League’s 20-club governance model.

Two weeks to go until the is back!

Who else is excited?

— Barclays Women s Super L…

Paul Pogba believes his France team-mate N Golo Kante would be a worthy winner of the Ballon d Or after playing a key role in Chelsea s Champions League success.

It was not too long ago that speculation suggesting Chelsea were tempted to cash in on Kante was rife, with the midfielder struggling with a few injuries in 2019-20.

But he enjoyed a strong 2020-21, evidenced particularly by his performances towards the end of the season in the Champions League.

The 30-year-old stamped his presence all over the Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid and was named man of the match for both legs in a 3-1 aggregate triumph.

During the second encounter in London, Kante made five interceptions – only bettered by six from Jorginho – but also made more pass…

Paris Saint-Germain have decided to turn the current loan of Nuno Mendes from Sporting Lisbon into a permanent deal at the end of the season, according to .

Still only 19, Mendes has established himself as a pretty regular starter in the star-studded PSG team, edging slowly ahead of the far more experienced trio of Laywin Kurzawa (29), Juan Bernat (29) and Abdou Diallo (25). He joined the Parisians on a temporary basis for the 2021-22 season, with a sum of €40m reportedly set in the agreement as a trigger to make the switch permanent at the end of the loan. However, PSG are currently in talks with Sporting over the possibility of reducing the said price.

The loan move took place after four rounds of the Ligue 1 had already been played, and since then, he has made a to…

Sergio Aguero is set to sign a one-year contract extension at Manchester City, .

The Argentina international has been prolific for the Citizens since signing from Atletico Madrid in the summer of 2011 averaging over twenty-seven goals in each of this five full campaigns at the club so far.

He has also started this season in electrifying form, netting nine goals in just five appearances in all competitions so far including a hat-trick in Wednesday’s Champions League victory over Borussia Monchengladbach.

He has spoken about rejoining first club Independiente when his current contract expires in 2019 but he is now in line for a twelve month extension.

Aguero missed last weekend’s Manchester derby through suspension and will again sit out as Pep Gu…

West Brom have announced the signing of Porto winger Silvestre Varela on a season-long loan.

The Portugal international becomes the 10th new arrival at The Hawthorns since the end of last season after passing a medical.

The versatile wideman has 26 international caps to his name and arrives in the Premier League with a record of 30 goals from 115 Primeira Liga appearances for Porto.

Silvestre is a vastly-experienced player, both with Porto and his national team, and I m delighted we ve managed to secure his services, said head coach Alan Irvine.

He s got pace and power, gets his fair share of goals and is also a creator of chances for others.

He s a fantastic addition to our squad.

Varela started his career at Sporting Lisbon, and was …

Tottenham Hotspur are interested in signing Ousmane Dembele from Paris Saint-Germain in the January transfer window, according to . Dembele is struggling to make an impact at PSG at the moment following his move from Barcelona for £50 million in the summer of 2023, and Tottenham are among the clubs keeping tabs on the 26-year-old France international winger.

Dembele has made four starts and one substitute appearance in Ligue 1 for PSG so far this season. The 26-year-old forward has given one assist in those games. The Frenchman has also played once in the UEFA Champions League for Luis Enrique’s side so far this campaign.

Tottenham Hotspur are fourth in the Premier League table at the moment with 14 points from six matches, four points behind leaders and defending ch…

Pep Guardiola insists there is no pressure on Yaya Toure to reclaim his role as Manchester City s talisman following the midfielder s sensational return to first-team action last weekend.

Toure had been frozen out after outspoken agent Dimitri Seluk criticised Guardiola for leaving his client out of City s squad for the group stage of the Champions League.

The 33-year-old belatedly offered an apology earlier this month and was a surprise inclusion in the starting line-up at Crystal Palace.

A lean and sharp Toure responded by netting both goals in a 2-1 win. It was a familiar sight for City fans, with the player having struck decisively on the way to multiple major honours since joining from Barcelona in 2010.

But Guardiola is not ready to saddle Toure wit…

Following the appointment of Louis van Gaal as Manchester United manager, we profile the Dutchman and his impressive coaching career.

Alex Ferguson s 27-year tenure at Old Trafford was always going to prove a tough act to follow, and so it proved as successor David Moyes failed to stamp his authority on a United side that fell well short of defending its 13th Premier League title, won in Ferguson s last campaign at the helm.

United s record appearance maker Ryan Giggs took over on a brief interim basis but, following continuous speculation that Van Gaal would be the man to take the reins permanently, the announcement was made official on Monday, with the Dutchman signing a three-year contract, which will take effect after the FIFA World Cup.

Van Gaal has vast experienc…