Juventus defender De Sciglio eyes Premier League challenge in Champions League last 16

Mattia De Sciglio hopes Juventus draw an English club in the Champions League last 16 after getting a taste of the Premier League two seasons ago.

Juve battled to a 4-3 aggregate victory over Tottenham in the first knockout round in 2017-18 after settling for a 2-2 draw in the opening encounter in Turin.

The Serie A champions eventually lost out to Real Madrid in the quarter-finals and had their hopes dashed by Ajax at the same stage last term.

Maurizio Sarri s men will expect to go further after topping Group D and defender De Sciglio said he now wants to face either of their two possible English opponents, Spurs or Chelsea.

If you want to get to the end of the competition, sooner or later you have to meet all the strongest opponents, the Italy internat…

Solskjaer delight as Man Utd seal deal for teenage wing wizard Diallo

Manchester United have completed the signing of teenage winger Amad Diallo from Atalanta, and manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer reckons he has landed a future star. 

Diallo has signed a four-and-a-half-year contract, tying him to the Premier League giants until June 2025.

United s pursuit of Diallo began in 2016 and the 18-year-old has since broken through in Serie A, playing five first-team games and scoring once for Atalanta. 

A deal had been agreed in October and now a work permit has been secured that allows the move to take place. 

United said, in a statement on their website, that Diallo would join up with them as soon as he receives a visa.

Signed 
Sealed 
Delivered 

We are

Guinea progress past Mali in drawing of lots

Guinea have won a place in the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals ahead of Mali following the drawing of lots.

Guinea will meet Ghana in the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final after progressing at the expense of Mali in the drawing of lots to decide Group D.

The Ivory Coast were already assured of their place in the last eight as group winners, but Guinea and Mali faced a nervous wait after ending the first round with identical records.

A victory for either in the last round of group fixtures would have been enough to seal qualification, but Modibo Maiga’s 47th minute equaliser earned Mali a 1-1 draw after Kevin Constant had given Guinea an early lead.

Maiga’s goal was ultimately in vain, however, with Guinea being picked at random to go through on…

Ange Postecoglou accepts Liverpool denied ‘legitimate goal’ by VAR error

Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou has acknowledged Liverpool were denied a “legitimate goal” in last weekend’s match but defended VAR operator Darren England.

Spurs claimed a dramatic 2-1 victory over Liverpool last Saturday, but the result was mired in controversy after a Luis Diaz effort in the 34th-minute was incorrectly ruled out for offside.

The incident was reviewed but VAR operator England mistakenly believed the on-field decision had been to award the goal and, after establishing Diaz had been onside, England told referee Simon Hooper “check complete” before Tottenham resumed the game with the score 0-0.

“We’ve got to play our football, steer the game towards the areas we want to dominate in because if we don’t it becomes a difficult g…

Mane insists he respects Liverpool after suggesting Senegalese people can decide his future

Sadio Mane insists he respects Liverpool but remained non-committal on his future amid links to Bayern Munich.

The Liverpool forward has been strongly linked to the Bundesliga champions, and suggested he would reveal his future following the Reds Champions League final with Real Madrid last week.

Mane offered little clarity on his future after the defeat to Madrid, but then suggested his preference lies away from the Premier League by saying he will let the Senegalese people decide his next destination.

Isn t it between 60 to 70 per cent of Senegalese want me to leave Liverpool? I will do what they want. We will see soon, he said while away on international duty.

But after becoming Senegal s record scorer with a hat-trick against Benin on Saturday, Mane…

Martin Caceres set for long Juventus stay

Sky Italia is reporting that Uruguayan defender Martin Caceres is on the verge of signing a new deal with Juventus.

The player s agent Daniel Fonseca has already established initial contact with club officials over a new contract for his client.

Caceres is tied to the Bianconeri until June 2016 and he is perfectly happy to commit his long-term future to the club.

The 27-year-old initially joined Juventus on loan from Barcelona in the summer of 2009, before returning to the club as a Sevilla player two and a half years later.

The Bianconeri purchased his contract the following summer and Caceres went on to make 35 league appearances for the Old Lady during next two years.

Caceres, who can cover any position in the back four, started all four games…

Prediction: Arsenal vs Manchester United

Best Odds: 8/11

Bookmaker:

In what could turn out to be a crucial showdown from the Emirates on Sunday afternoon, Arsenal will welcome Manchester United to north London.

Arsenal

Starting with the hosts, last seen putting in another stellar display as they claimed north London bragging rights thanks to a 2-0 victory away at Tottenham, Arsenal are on course for what could be a history-making campaign at the Emirates. While Mikel Arteta’s youngsters would have been frustrated after watching Manchester City secure a remarkable second-half comeback against Spurs in midweek, the Gunners still hold a five-point buffer over the defending champions. Continuing to gain a string of plaudits on either side of the World Cup break, Arteta’s side have suffered just a sing…

Prediction: Crystal Palace vs Chelsea

Verdict: Chelsea to score over 1.5 goals

Best Odds: 

Bookmaker: 

Making the trip across London in midweek, Chelsea will look to move one step closer to another top-four finish when they travel to Selhurst Park on Tuesday evening.

Crystal Palace

Starting with the hosts, although Crystal Palace may have impressed on their return to action with a 2-0 defeat away at Bournemouth last month, the Eagles now find themselves in the midst of a real sluggish patch. Putting in what looked like a fatigued display at the King Power on Saturday and hit with a 3-0 drumming away at an inconsistent Leicester, Roy Hodgson s side have have now lost their last three Premier League matchups on the bounce, a run highlighted by a worrying 1-0 loss at home against Burnley. Fr…

Prediction: Sevilla vs Real Madrid

Best Odds: 19/20

Bookmaker:

Hoping to widen their buffer at the top of the La Liga table on Saturday evening, Real Madrid will travel to the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan when they meet Sevilla.

Sevilla

Starting with the hosts, forced to settle for a 2-2 stalemate at home against Rayo Vallecano when heading into October’s international break, Sevilla have once again failed to pick up any kind of stability since opening up the 2023/24 campaign. At the heart of an infamous relegation scrap last season and dealing with some public issues behind the scenes at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan, Diego Alonso’s side have claimed just a single win from any of their previous six appearances across all competitions a run that stems back to September 17th. Marking their return on Sat…

Prediction: AC Milan vs Torino

Best odds: 5/6

Bookmaker:

AC Milan are set to welcome Torino to the San Siro on Friday evening, for a match which opens the 22nd round of the Serie A roller coaster in the 2022/23 season. Needless to say, both teams need the points on offer here, and with not much between them at the moment, it should be an interesting contest between two opponents of high quality.

AC Milan

They ve been in the race for a while, but the reigning Italian champions have lost all realistic hope of retaining the title. At the moment, Milan are sixth with 38 points, 18 less than Napoli at the top. At this point, it seems they re in for a desperate struggle to qualify for the Champions League, with second-place Inter (43), third-place Roma (40), fourth-place Lazio (39) and Atalanta in…