Market: Real Sociedad to score over 1.5 goals
Odds:
Simply looking to carry on from they left off back in March, Real Sociedad will welcome Osasuna to an empty Reale Arena on Sunday night.
Starting with the hosts, last seen back in March when picking up a deserved 2-1 win away at Eibar, Real Sociedad have continued on what has been an outstanding campaign at the Reale Arena. Marking their return this weekend still sat in the Champions League spots, Imanol Alguacil s men had previously won seven of their last eight appearances, with that sole defeat coming in a 1-0 loss away at the Nou Camp. Continuing to shock many across La Liga prior to the enforced break, there is no doubt that Alguacil would have been thrilled by his side s displays on home soil. Along with…
Manchester United overlooking Antonio Conte hurt Patrice Evra, who has no doubt his former Juventus boss could have turned things around at Old Trafford.
Conte was linked with United ahead of the dismissal of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer last November, but Ralf Rangnick was given the nod as an interim boss with a view to changing the club from the top down as a consultant at the end of the 2021-22 season.
Rangnick averaged 1.5 points per game and a win percentage of 42 in the Premier League – both of which were record lows in the competition for a Red Devils manager – as United failed to qualify for the Champions League.
Conte ended up at Tottenham instead and steered them from ninth to a top-four finish, leaving Evra to wonder what might have been.
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Paul Pogba felt Manchester United deserved their 4-2 defeat at Leicester City and claimed the Red Devils have a long-standing problem they must resolve in terms of performances.
United s English football league record of 29 consecutive away games unbeaten came to an emphatic end at the King Power Stadium, where they conceded four times in a Premier League match on the road for the first time since April 2019 at Everton.
Mason Greenwood s spectacular opener was cancelled out by Youri Tielemans, and Caglar Soyuncu put Leicester ahead with 12 minutes remaining.
In a frantic finale, Marcus Rashford equalised on his first appearance of the season only for Jamie Vardy to make it 3-2 just 54 seconds later, with the Foxes restoring their advantage straight from kick-off.…
Sarina Wiegman will succeed Phil Neville as England Women s head coach from September next year.
The Netherlands boss will replace the former Manchester United defender on a four-year deal.
Neville s contract expires in July 2021, with the 43-year-old having been appointed in January 2018.
Wiegman will remain in charge of her home nation for the delayed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, while it remains to be seen who will oversee the Great Britain team in Japan.
England is the cradle of football and I m very much looking forward to contributing my experience and expertise to this ambitious team, said Wiegman, who guided Netherlands to the Euro 2017 title and last year s World Cup final.
That s some CV
Get to know the new head coach, Sarina Wi…
Julio Baptista believes Real Madrid s lack of stability is hurting the players heading into 2016.
The Brazilian played for Madrid from 2005-2008, with a loan spell at Arsenal for the 2006-07 season, and played 76 games and scored 13 goals for the Spanish giants.
A free agent following the expiration of his deal with Brazilian outfit Cruzeiro, Baptista has used some of his free time to run the rule over his former club and believes the club are too quick to call for change.
[At Madrid] if in a year you gain nothing, you don t have to change the coach, Baptista told AS.
In 2015 [under Carlo Ancelotti], Madrid won nothing, but the year before won the Champions League.
Sometimes you have put things in perspective to see if it is worth making a chan…
Erik ten Hag can lead Manchester United to a Premier League title challenge next season, according to Crystal Palace boss Patrick Vieira.
Ten Hag has enjoyed a fine start to his first pre-season at Old Trafford, with United racking up comfortable victories over Liverpool and Melbourne Victory during their tour of Asia and Australia, netting four goals in each game.
United missed out on Champions League qualification at the end of a dismal 2021-22 season, posting their lowest Premier League points tally (58), but hopes are high that Ten Hag can revitalise the side.
The club have been making moves in the transfer market in a bid to turn things around, adding Feyenoord left-back Tyrell Malacia, former Tottenham and Brentford midfielder Christian Eriksen, and agre…
Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri declared we have a duty to win the Scudetto after the Bianconeri failed to win a trophy last season.
Allegri returned to Turin at the start of the 2021-22 campaign and had to settle for fourth in Serie A after a poor start to the season.
Juve were unable to keep up with Scudetto challengers Milan and Inter, while Napoli finished in third, nine points clear of the Bianconeri.
Allegri s side also fell to extra-time defeat in the Coppa Italia final against Inter and crashed out of the Champions League at the last-16 stage to Villarreal.
That marked the first season Juve have not lifted a trophy in 10 years, and Allegri hopes he has laid the foundations for improvement in the upcoming campaign.
As always, we are st…
United States forward Clint Dempsey can make World Cup qualification history for his country when they face Guatemala in Group C on Friday.
The 33-year-old attacker recalled to Jurgen Klinsmann s squad after missing USA s first two matches in the fourth round – sits level with Landon Donovan on 13 World Cup qualifying goals.
Dempsey insisted his mentality has never changed since making his debut in 2004 and has the chance to move to outright leader in that team category against Guatemala, although his overall goal tally of 48 remains well short of Donovan s record mark of 57.
I have enjoyed my time with the national team and every time I have got called up to camp and played in games, I have had the same mentality,” Dempsey told US Soccer.
I ha…
Robert Lewandowski will complement Barcelona s existing attacking options and help the club conquer the world once more, says team-mate Eric Garcia.
The Poland international has ended an eight-year stay with Bayern Munich to move to Camp Nou in one of the transfer window s more protracted transfers.
Lewandowski was on hand to watch Barca deliver a 6-0 pre-season thumping against Inter Miami on Tuesday in Florida, with a star performance from fellow new recruit Raphinha suggesting a bright season lays ahead.
Garcia believes Lewandowski, the European Golden Shoe winner in both 2020-21 and 2021-22, will add to their prowess on the pitch, and that they can deliver a return to the glory days over the coming season.
Lewandowski joins an imposing forward …
West Ham have announced plans to improve the matchday experience at the London Stadium by bringing supporters closer to the pitch.
The club moved into the stadium, which was originally built for the 2012 London Olympics, at the start of the 2016-17 season.
Supporters have been unhappy with the atmosphere generated in the stadium, though, and many have cited the distance between the pitch and stands as a primary concern.
However, the club have now said that the Sir Trevor Brooking and Bobby Moore stands – located behind the goals – could be moved forward by four metres to create a more traditional stadium aesthetic.
The club have written to season ticket holders in those areas to inform them of the possible development.
Karren Brady, vice chair…