Suspended FIFA president Sepp Blatter expects all corruption charges to be dropped following his FIFA ethics committee hearing.

Speaking for the first time since the hearing, Blatter said the trial has had a severe impact on his health as well as the lives of his family, but said he had been told the charges would be dropped.

The judge told me at the beginning of the hearing that they would drop the corruption accusations, Blatter told SonntagsBlick.

At the end, I got the feeling that justice will prevail.

Blatter said he nearly died in October as the FIFA corruption crisis began to unravel.

I nearly died at the end of October. It was five to 12, Blatter recalled.

My immune system fell apart and I just collapsed. Luckily, my heart and…

Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva says he is ready to deputise at centre-back ahead of Friday s FA Cup third-round clash with Exeter City.

The Brazilian was forced to drop into the back line during Tuesday s 1-0 League Cup semi-final win at Stoke City after Dejan Lovren was forced off with a hamstring injury.

It proved to be a costly outing for Liverpool at the Britannia Stadium, with Philippe Coutinho and Kolo Toure also sustaining injuries.

Hamstring problems for Lovren and Coutinho see them join Daniel Sturridge, Divock Origi and Martin Skrtel in being sidelined by similar issues.

And, with Liverpool now down to the bare bones defensively, Lucas knows he may have to get used to playing in the back four until a suitable alternative can be found, but h…

Marko Arnautovic has completed a move from West Ham to Chinese Super League side Shanghai SIPG.

Arnautovic handed in a transfer request at London Stadium in January, but agreed to stay at West Ham, signing a new five-year deal.

However, renewed interest from China reportedly led to the 30-year-old former Stoke City forward asking to leave West Ham again in July.

The fee to take him to Shanghai is rumoured to be £22million, with Arnautovic linking up with Hulk and former Chelsea playmaker Oscar at SIPG.

A West Ham statement read: West Ham United can confirm that Marko Arnautovic has joined Chinese Super League champions Shanghai SIPG for an undisclosed fee.

The 30-year-old Austrian departs after two seasons at London Stadium, during which he …

This summer marks the end of an era for European football, as goalkeeping legend Gianluigi Buffon ends his 17-year stay at Italian giants Juventus. I hope that his recent spat with English referee Michael Oliver will not live long in the memory.

The veteran keeper was expected to retire from the game he has served so well for so long. However, a recent interview suggests that he could carry on playing next season after he admitted that he had received a few interesting proposals.

According to , PSG have offered Buffon a two-year deal, while reports elsewhere suggest that Premier League clubs Manchester City, Liverpool and even West Ham may be interested in signing the veteran star this summer.

Parma on the rise

However, something of enormous interest to Buffon …

While Manchester United might have mounted a dramatic comeback at home against Nottingham Forest last weekend as they eventually snatched a , it is fair to say that the Premier League giants are seeking some recent stability.

Although Erik ten Hag’s side might have broken the bank this summer as they welcomed the likes of Mason Mount and to Old Trafford, it appears that the Red Devils could be set for a hectic end to the transfer window.

With England international now facing a spell on the sidelines after sustaining a muscle tear, the former Ajax boss is dealing with what has become a stacked injury list.

With both ten Hag and fans around Old Trafford making it abundantly clear that they are seeking late reinforcements before the summer transfer window slams…

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Desperate to bring an end to what has been a nightmare week, Tottenham will make the trip to an empty Villa Park on Sunday night.

Aston Villa

Starting with the hosts, after throwing away the lead at St. James Park last week and watching Newcastle snatch a last-gasp equalizer, Aston Villa have seen their European ambitions take a dent. Struggling to fill the void left by an injured Jack Grealish over the past month, Dean Smith s side are without a win in their last three Premier League contests. In fact, Villa have won only one of seven league games without Grealish since their 2019 promotion, drawing two and losing four. With their recent issues highlighted by that shock 1-0 defeat against a rock-bottom Sheffield United when opening Ma…

Cristiano Ronaldo has no intention of stopping as he says he is still motivated to compete with the young lions coming through in the game.

Ronaldo is reportedly considering signing a contract extension to keep him at Al-Nassr until June 2026, taking him past his 41st birthday.

The Portugal international has scored 42 goals in 41 appearances for the Saudi Pro League club this season, and he insists he is still motivated to keep going.

Speaking on the Whoop podcast, he said: I feel proud to have this age and still compete at the highest level. It s great, and it gives me motivation to carry on.

If you look at my career for the last 20 years, my level is high. If you are top for 20 years, it s unbelievable.

I do that, and I continue to do that. Fo…

Aleksandar Mitrovic scored a penalty in the 10th minute of second-half stoppage time as Al-Hilal denied Cristiano Ronaldo s Al-Nassr victory in a 1-1 draw.

Mitrovic netted his 27th Saudi Pro League goal of the campaign after Sadio Mane was harshly judged to have fouled Saud Abdulhamid in the area.

Mane stuck out an arm to shield the ball, catching his opponent in the throat, though the contact appeared to have been outside of the box.

Mitrovic made no mistake to keep Al-Hilal s unbeaten campaign going.

The Serbian s spot-kick cancelled out Otavio s first-minute opener, with Ronaldo having set up his compatriot.

Champions Al-Hilal remain 12 points clear of Al-Nassr at the summit of the Pro League standings.

M9 IS ON FIRE

— AlHil…

Schalke have announced Christian Heidel will take over as the club s sporting director.

Heidel, who is employed in the same role at Mainz, will begin working at Schalke in time for the start of next season.

Schalke s supervisory board chairman Clemens Tonnies highlighted the Bundesliga knowledge Heidel will bring to the club.

We are convinced that Christian Heidel, with his undoubted sport expertise and experience, his proven leadership and his positive aura, is the man for FC Schalke 04, he said.

Heidel, who has been at Mainz for 24 years, will be succeeding Horst Heldt, Schalke s sporting director since 2010.

It was definitely a quick decision, because all things were exchanged that needed to be exchanged, Heidel told Sky.

I always to…

Everton are facing competition from Tottenham Hotspur in their pursuit of Wigan Athletic midfielder James McCarthy, .

Toffee’s manager Roberto Martinez, who has already took three of his former players to Goodison Park, is keen on being reunited with the 22 year old, who he took to the DW Stadium back in 2009.

However, he fears that the added interest from the North London side will see the Republic of Ireland international’s transfer fee become overinflated.

McCarthy has made over 100 Premier League appearances for the Latics, and was one of their stand-out performers in their triumphant FA Cup campaign last season.

Nonetheless the Glasgow born star, who has also drawn interest from Liverpool, Fulham and Manchester City, was unable to help the…