Carlo Ancelotti says Bayern Munich fitness coach Giovanni Mauri is not to blame for Manuel Neuer s latest foot injury.

The Germany international has been forced to undergo surgery on a fractured left metatarsal and is expected to be out of action until January.

It is the same foot Neuer broke during the Champions League quarter-final second-leg loss to Real Madrid that kept him sidelined for the final few weeks of last season.

President Uli Hoeness is reportedly unhappy with Bayern s medical staff amid suggestions they declared Neuer ready to return to action too quickly, but Ancelotti insists Mauri is not at fault.

When Manu began to play again, we thought it was the right time, the Bayern head coach told a news conference. It was very unfortunate, of c…

Sergi Roberto has completed a permanent transfer to newly-promoted Serie A side Como after ending his 14-year career with Barcelona in June.

Roberto, who made 373 appearances for Barca, has signed a two-year contract as a free agent, linking up with Cesc Fabregas in Italy s top flight.

He won 20 titles during his time in Catalonia, scoring 19 times, the most notable of which came in a dramatic win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League.

Roberto was restricted to just 14 outings in LaLiga last season, but enjoyed his second-most prolific season for the club with three goals.

The Spaniard becomes Como s 16th signing of the transfer window, with his versatility something Fabregas believes will be crucial in their survival this year.

S…

According to a recent report from El Desmarque, Chelsea are currently leading the way in the race to sign Real Madrid winger Vinicius Junior during the January transfer window. The teenage sensation is currently struggling to break his way into Zinedine Zidane’s starting line-up, which is to be expected, given the sheer volume of stars attempting to make their presence felt at the Santiago Bernabeu. 

Chelsea, on the other hand, are still aiming to fill the void that was left by Eden Hazard when the popular Belgian made his way over to Real during the summer transfer window. The Blues have been unable to make much noise in terms of transfers as a direct result of their ban, but now that Frank Lampard has the freedom to make something happen in the transfer window, it appears…

Junior Negrao scored after two penalties as Ulsan Hyundai clinched their second AFC Champions League title with a 2-1 win over Persepolis at Al Janoub Stadium.

VAR was pivotal, with referee Abdulrahman Al Jassim having to go to the pitchside monitor to award both of Ulsan s spot-kicks, which were both conceded by Mehdi Shiri. 

They came either side of half-time, with Persepolis – in search of a maiden Champions League crown after losing the 2018 final – going ahead through Mehdi Abdi Qara s 45th-minute goal.

Ultimately, though, Shiri s clumsiness cost the Iranian side, with Negrao s seventh goal of the tournament enough to seal Ulsan s success.

FULL-TIME | 1-2 Ulsan Hyundai 

Ulsan have done it! They are the kings of Asia for the sec…

Algeria coach Djamel Belmadi recognises his team are just two steps from history ahead of their Africa Cup of Nations semi-final with Nigeria, but reminded his players it will take their very best to lift the trophy.

The Fennec Foxes have been the standout side in the tournament, avoiding a single defeat in their five matches and conceding just once, that goal coming in the 1-1 quarter-final draw with Ivory Coast that they went on to win 4-3 on penalties.

Sunday s clash with Nigeria will be only Algeria s second semi-final since winning the competition as hosts in 1990, when they last contested the final.

While most coaches would look to deflect talk of such historic achievements and demand absolute focus, Belmadi reminisced about the 1990 victory and believes s…

Everton owner Farhad Moshiri said a decision on Frank Lampard s future does not rest with him.

Moshiri, who has hired six permanent managers since he invested into the club in 2016, was in attendance as Everton lost 2-0 to West Ham on Saturday at London Stadium.

That marked an eighth defeat in nine games for Everton across all competitions, leaving them 19th in the table, level on points with last-placed Southampton.

Yet Moshiri, who publicly backed Lampard prior to a crunch defeat to Southampton last week, claimed a decision on the manager is not in his hands.

I can t comment. It s not my decision, he told Sky Sports.

Bill Kenwright and the rest of the club s board watched on from the stands against West Ham, having not attended Goodison Park fo…

According to a recent report from Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona have highlighted five potential targets that could replace the outgoing Luis Suarez. The popular Uruguayan striker seems to be on his way out of the Nou Camp, and while there aren’t all too many people talking about where he’s going to end up, there has certainly been a lot of talk about his replacement. 

The names that have been mentioned amongst the five are Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Rodrigo, Fernando Llorente and Olivier Giroud, with their primary target being Lautaro Martinez, despite the fact that his release clause is set at a whopping €111 million. 

Aubameyang has been most recently linked with that particular rumor gathering some steam, but with Suarez still being on the books, it doesn�…

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer still hopes to convince Edinson Cavani to stay at Manchester United after watching the striker s matchwinning display against Tottenham.

The Red Devils came from a goal down to win 3-1 in north London on Sunday and close the gap to Premier League leaders Manchester City to 11 points, with a game in hand.

Cavani saw a first-half goal disallowed following a controversial VAR review, with Scott McTominay penalised for catching Son Heung-min in the face with a flailing hand in the build-up.

Son promptly put Spurs ahead five minutes later, but United stretched their unbeaten Premier League away run to 23 games thanks to a superb second-half showing, Cavani heading in Mason Greenwood s cross after earlier giving Fred the chance to equalise, with su…

Atletico Madrid are interested in signing Marcus Thuram from Borussia Monchengladbach and are monitoring his situation closely, according to .

The 25-year-old son of legendary French defender Lilian Thuram runs out of contract at the end of the season, and the prospect of obtaining his talent without paying a transfer fee is attracting plenty of attention across Europe. Over in England, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are believed to be keeping an eye out for developments, as are Inter Milan in Italy. The Nerazzurri even made an attempt to sign him ahead of this season and are expected to try again in January.

Having risen through the youth ranks at Sochaux, Thuram also played for Guingamp before joining Gladbach in 2019 for a reported fee of €9 million. Sinc…

Sead Kolasinac has joined Marseille on a free transfer after the defender was released by Arsenal.

The Bosnia and Herzegovina international left the Gunners on Tuesday, having reached an agreement to terminate his contract.

Kolasinac had fallen out of favour at the Premier League club and returned to Schalke on loan last season.

The 28-year-old is on the move again, joining Ligue 1 side Marseille on a deal until the end of the next campaign.

Kolasinac made 118 appearances for Arsenal following his switch from Schalke in June 2017, but only played for Mikel Arteta s men five times this season.

He becomes Marseille s second signing of the January transfer window following the arrival of striker Cedric Bakambu from Beijing Guoan.

Sead Kolaš…