According to Sky Sports, Watford are set to keep hold of Troy Deeney after a great deal of speculation over his future. The 30-year-old has been with the Hornets ever since joining from Walsall back in 2010, and in that time he s established himself as one of the club s best players in their recent history. So then, the reports linking him with a switch elsewhere in the Premier League were obviously concerning for their fans.

Cardiff City initially approached Watford with the intention of putting in a bid, but they apparently cooled off not long after. Deeney has always been viewed as a hard-working forward who can be used across the pitch, but in this instance, it appears as if his immediate future will still be at Vicarage Road as opposed to elsewhere.

Watford s Premi…

Arjen Robben claims he is not preoccupied by extending his Bayern Munich contract which expires at the end of the season.

The 32-year-old Dutch winger was on target in Bayern s 3-1 win over Augsburg on Saturday.

Chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has previously suggested talks are planned with Robben about his future at the club.

When asked about this after Saturday s victory, Rummenigge said: Do not worry, next season we will have a great squad.

Robben s agent and father said last month the player was happy to stay at the club he joined in 2009 and that talks would take place in the autumn. 

Speaking after his goal against Augsburg, Robben suggested those negotiations are yet to begin, but he is not spending too much time worrying about i…

Harry Maguire has defended England and Gareth Southgate from criticism relating to their style of play, pointing out they did well at the last World Cup and Euro 2020 playing the same way.

England were held to a 0-0 draw by Italy at Molineux on Saturday, leaving them with two points after their first three Nations League games.

Of similar concern is the fact the Three Lions have not scored a single goal from open play in those matches, with their solitary strike coming from the penalty spot in the midweek 1-1 draw with Germany.

Manager Southgate has been criticised for perceived cautious tactics, which many consider to be the root of the issue.

But Maguire is not convinced, suggesting they are not doing anything different to when they reached the 2018 Wor…

Diego Maradona should have a day of celebration dedicated to him at every World Cup, according to FIFA president Gianni Infantino.

The legendary Argentine died at the age of 60 in November 2020 after suffering a cardiac arrest.

Paying tribute during the Qatar World Cup at an event to mark the second anniversary of Maradona s death, Infantino said the mercurial figure should be remembered at each subsequent tournament for his significant impact on football.

Diego is immortal, he is with us, Infantino said. We not only need to pay tribute but to celebrate also Diego. I would like that from now on, at every World Cup we would take one day to celebrate Diego Armando Maradona, because he made so many people fall in love with our sport, football.

I am Italian…

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says it would be a dream come true to lift silverware as Manchester United manager, with his side preparing for a Europa League semi-final against Roma.

While Solskjaer has improved United s Premier League standing since taking charge in December 2018, he is yet to win a trophy and has been beaten in all four of the semi-finals he has reached.

That included the semi-final in the Europa League last season against eventual winners Sevilla.

United are at home for the first leg against Roma, a team they have played six times before – all in the Champions League – winning four.

One of those victories was the famous 7-1 win in the second leg of a 2007 Champions League quarter-final tie that Solskjaer played in, the spirit from which he …

Leroy Sane s 72nd-minute strike proved decisive as Manchester City reinvigorated their title defence and ended Liverpool s unbeaten Premier League run with a crucial 2-1 win at the Etihad Stadium.

Roberto Firmino looked to have sealed a potentially vital point for leaders Liverpool in the title race when he equalised just past the hour, but Sane struck soon after, confirming the Reds first league defeat of the season in their 21st game and moving City to second and within four points of the summit.

Liverpool were mightily unlucky not to take an early lead when a defensive mix-up between John Stones and Ederson followed Sadio Mane hitting the post, but they survived and finished the first half well – Sergio Aguero netting in ruthless fashion.

Firmino restored pa…

Matthijs de Ligt leaving Juventus would be a great loss for Massimiliano Allegri s side, according to former Bianconeri defender Andrea Barzagli.

Barzagli formed a formidable centre-back trio with Giorgio Chiellini and Leonardo Bonucci during his time in Turin, with the latter pair still playing for Juve when De Ligt arrived for €85.5million from Ajax in 2019.

The Netherlands international has fallen short of expectations during his first three years, leading to transfer speculation with Chelsea, Manchester United and Bayern Munich apparently interested.

De Ligt played more minutes (2,675) than any other Juve outfield player in the 2021-22 Serie A season as Allegri s side finished fourth after a poor start to the campaign.

While questions remain over t…

Liverpool are keeping tabs on Borussia Dortmund winger John McGinn, according to . However, the report has claimed that the former Premier League champions will move for the England international only if one of their current front-three leaves.

Sancho is one of of the best young wingers in Europe and will be a big player for England at the upcoming Euro 2020 finals. The 21-year-old left City for Dortmund in 2017 and has developed well in Germany. The winger scores goals and creates chances for his teammates.

Liverpool would be a better team with Sancho in it. However, it is hard to see the Reds splash out the cash that Dortmund would want for the winger if Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah or Roberto Firmino does not leave.

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I am in love with him, Zidane said. Firstly, as a person because he came here to do a trial a long time ago.   

  He is our rival and I cannot say anything else.  

Those are the words of Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane, who has made it clear that he is a big, big fan of Kylian Mbappe. The French youngster has been heavily linked with a move away from Paris Saint-Germain for quite some time now, but a deal has yet to come to fruition. Following his exploits in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, in which he scored in the final to help France on their way towards  winning the title, it seemed like just a matter of time before he flew onto the radar of teams like Real. 

Now, it s just a case of waiting and seeing what sort of deal Real could come up with if they…

Eintracht Frankfurt have signed Italy international left-back Luca Pellegrini from Juventus on a season-long loan.

The Rome-born 23-year-old, who has one Italy cap from 2020, debuted for Juventus last season, going on to make 21 appearances in all competitions.

Pellegrini s move coincides with left wing-back Filip Kostic s arrival at the Bianconeri from Eintracht this week.

The former Italy youth international, who was loaned out to Cagliari and Genoa in 2019 and 2020 respectively, would also have faced competition for the left-back role with Alex Sandro.

Europa League winners Eintracht have made a raft of personnel changes this off-season in preparation for their participation in the Champions League.

Jens Petter Hauge, Lucas Alario, Hrvoje Smolc…