Cristiano Ronaldo s remarkable run of form continued with the 50th hat-trick of his career as his four-goal haul inspired Real Madrid to a thrilling 6-3 win over Girona in LaLiga on Sunday.
The Portuguese netted for the eighth game in a row in all competitions, while it was the fourth league outing in succession in which he has found the net at least twice.
A quiet start to 2017-18 saw Ronaldo score just four LaLiga goals before the turn of the year but since late January he has been virtually unstoppable, this stunning display at the Santiago Bernabeu taking his tally to 21 in his past 11 outings across domestic and continental competitions.
His first arrived in the 11th minute, a clinical left-footed finish from Toni Kroos ball, but Girona pegged the champions …
Goalkeeper Fraser Forster has joined Southampton from Scottish champions Celtic for an undisclosed fee.
The 26-year-old England international had been strongly linked with a move to the Premier League after making a name for himself at Parkhead and sealed a switch to St Mary s on Saturday following a medical.
Forster has penned a four-year deal and will now challenge Artur Boruc, himself a former Celtic goalkeeper, Paulo Gazzaniga and Kelvin Davis for regular first-team football under Ronald Koeman.
I really want to thank the club and the Celtic fans for all they have given me over the past four years. It has been a wonderful honour to play for one of the world s great football clubs and I wish everyone at Celtic and the supporters every success for the future…
Mario Gotze s marked his first start since scoring the winner in the World Cup final by helping Bayern Munich see off Preussen Munster 4-1.
Gotze etched his name into German footballing folklore by netting in extra-time against Argentina at the Maracana a little over a month ago, and was on hand to get Bayern s defence of their DFB-Pokal crown off to a comfortable start when he opened the scoring on Sunday.
Bundesliga champions Bayern were tested early by a Preussen outfit who sit 12th in Germany s third tier, but normal service was resumed after Gotze s 19th-minute header.
Manuel Neuer was required to produce two good stops prior to the goal, but Bayern pressed on after going ahead and added a second courtesy of a cool finish from another of Germany s World Cup …
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez feels Jose Mourinho needed a bit of time to realise what it means to be part of the La Liga club.
The Portuguese tactician joined Madrid from Inter Milan in 2010 and initially struggled to cope with the fans critical attitude toward the team.
However, Perez believes Mourinho now understands the expectations at Real are sky-high.
Mourinho has taken a while to understand what Real Madrid is about. He was surprised by the club, the people and the fact that the fans whistle at the players and at him, Perez told the club s assembly.
He emphasised the fact that he had been at several clubs, in Portugal, Italy and England, but I told him that this is Real Madrid a truly unique club.
The club s expectations are …
Nicolas Anelka has defended Samir Nasri s expletive-laden rant at reporters after France were beaten by Spain in the quarter-finals of Euro 2012.
Nasri had taken a hostile stance toward the French media during the tournament, directing a shushing gesture at them following his goal against England.
And after Les Blues exit to the eventual winners Spain, the Manchester City playmaker turned the air blue by aiming an angry tirade at the waiting press.
However, Shanghai Shenhua striker Anelka has defended his compatriot, insisting he should be allowed to air his thoughts in public just like anyone else.
In France, everybody has the right to speak publicly, he told French broadcaster TF1.
The media can do it, normal people can do it, and so can Nasr…
Market: Swansea win
Odds: 11/10 @
Looking to extend on their promotion charge in midweek, Swansea will welcome an inconsistent Reading to an empty Liberty Stadium on Wednesday night.
Starting with the hosts, despite getting hit with that shock 2-0 loss against Derby earlier in the month, Swansea have managed to bounce back in impressive fashion. Still seen as one of the leading contenders to book a Premier League return this season, the Whites once again impressed on Boxing Day as they secured a routine 2-0 victory away at QPR. Now landing back-to-back Championship victories and receiving a string of praise from Head Coach Steve Cooper, Swansea should also be boosted by their extended unbeaten record on home soil. Last seen at the Liberty when picking up a very…
Robert Lewandowski will be reunited with Bayern Munich in the Champions League on September 13, with Erling Haaland facing former side Borussia Dortmund the following day.
Following his move to Barcelona in July, Lewandowski is set for a swift reunion with Bayern after the European heavyweights were drawn together in Group C.
The same can be said for Haaland, who departed Dortmund for Group G opponents Manchester City.
Lewandowski will return to the Allianz Arena on matchday two; 24 hours before Haaland and City welcome Dortmund to the Etihad Stadium, with the return fixture at Signal Iduna Park taking place on October 25.
Reigning champions Real Madrid launch their title defence away at Celtic on September 6, though the standout fixture of the opening da…
As we wrote a couple of days ago, Marko Grujic is returning to Hertha Berlin next season. The Serbian midfielder had returned to Liverpool from Hertha once the 2018-19 ended and immediately started rumours of where he could go next. First it was confirmed from Liverpool that the player would be going on another loan before getting a better chance in Liverpool s first team and several clubs were mentioned.
Grujic was a target for three Bundesliga clubs Hertha, Werder Bremen and Eintracht Frankfurt, who had had some big success signing Serbian talents recently. Atalanta also wanted to see Grujic in their ranks, especially since they will be playing Champions League football this season. Even Galatasaray was briefly in that conversation.
But on Monday, Hertha confirmed wha…
Jurgen Klopp knows Liverpool must cut off the supply line to Jamie Vardy when they travel to Leicester City in a meeting of the top two in the Premier League.
The Reds return to domestic duties on December 26 following their Club World Cup triumph in Qatar, with a trip to the King Power Stadium offering them the chance to extend their lead in the table.
Leicester missed the chance to cut the gap last weekend when they went down 3-1 to reigning champions Manchester City, meaning Liverpool remain 10 points clear ahead of a game against their nearest rivals.
However, if they want to put further daylight between themselves and the Foxes, they will need to keep Vardy quiet.
The former England international has scored 17 league goals already in this campai…
Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho said England is the only place where Leicester City s Premier League title miracle could occur, accusing the continent s bigger clubs of perceiving themselves as the Mother Teresa of football .
Leicester came from nowhere last season, having narrowly avoided relegation in 2014-15, to win the title over Mourinho s Chelsea – who started the campaign as champions and only managed a 10th place finish with the Portuguese manager sacked in the process.
Now, Mourinho is preparing to face off with Leicester manager Claudio Ranieri – ironically the last counterpart he faced in the Premier League when he was in charge of Chelsea prior to his departure in December – as United boss in Sunday s Community Shield and he claims the Italian…