Sulley Muntari joins Deportivo La Coruna on trial

Sulley Muntari joins Deportivo La Coruna on trial

Sulley Muntari played with new Deportivo la Coruna manager Clarence seedorf during their time together at AC Milan

Sulley Muntari has joined Deportivo La Coruna on trial with a view to signing a permanent contract with the La Liga side. 

The 33-year-old will be assessed by new Deportivo manager Clarence Seedorf, who joined the club on Monday.

Muntari and Seedorf played together at AC Milan and Seedorf also coached the Ghanaian during his time as manager of the Italian side.

Seedorf took charge of Deportivo on monday

Muntari has been a free agent since leaving Pescara last summer.

He made his name in Italy with Udinese and also spent time with Inter Milan, making him part of the exclusive group of players who have represented both of the Milan giants.

Muntari also played in England for Sunderland and Portsmouth and was part of the Pompey side that won the FA Cup in 2008.

Patrice Evra completes free transfer to West Ham

Patrice Evra completes free transfer to West Ham

Patrice Evra has completed his free transfer to West Ham and signed a contract until the end of the season.

Evra, 36, arrived at the club's Rush Green training complex on Wednesday morning before passing a medical and signing a short-term contract until the end of June 2018.

What could Evra bring to PL ?

Why do west Ham want Patrice Evra at 36?

Evra has been assigned the no. 27 shirt and could make his debut against Watford on February 10 at London Stadium.

He told West Ham's official website: "I'm really happy to be a Hammer, to be back in the Premier League and I love this game!"

"It's amazing to be back and I am thankful to West Ham for giving me the opportunity to do my job. When I wake up and know I am going to work hard, to have fun with my team-mates and give my best on the pitch, I want to say a massive thanks to West Ham, to the chairman, to the manager to all my teammates, who have given me a nice welcome, my agent and my brother.

"I'm just happy to be here, it's really simple. You don't realise how lucky you are and just to wake up this morning and know I am going to train with my new teammates made me smile!"

Evra, who spent eight-and-a-half years at United in total - including the 2013/14 season alongside current West Ham manager David Moyes - was  Sacked by Marseille earlier this season and banned by UEFA following an altercation with a supporter.

The ban, which runs until June 30, only relates to UEFA tournaments and does not prevent Evra from playing in any domestic competitions, including the Premier League.

Evra says he jumped at the chance to sign for West Ham once he was made aware of the opportunity to be reunited with Moyes.

He said: "It happened really fast. My agent called me and told me I needed to come back [from Dubai] to London as quick as I could and I had a nice meeting with the manager, who I know from Manchester United, of course, and I met the Chairman, so it was really easy.

"When you have to make a deal and money is not the issue, the deal could be done in five minutes. The main thing was for me to join West Ham and to help my teammates to win as many games as we can.

"It was the fastest thing I have done in my life, because both parties wanted to work together, so it was very easy to make an agreement."

Roger Federer to play at ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam

Roger Federer to play at ABN   AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam

Swiss legend could claim No 1 ATP Ranking for the first time in over five years in Rotterdam. The tournament starts on Monday, February 12.

Roger Federer could be crowned world No 1 with 180 points up for grabs for reaching the last four in Rotterdam

Roger Federer has signed up to play at the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam next week where he could be crowned world No 1.

Federer successfully retained his Australian Open crown with a five-set victory over Marin Cilic last month to find himself just 155 points behind top-ranked Rafael Nadal.

But with the  Spaniard not scheduled to play until the end of February in Acapulco the door has opened for the 36-year-old to become the oldest-ever world No 1 with a run to the semi-finals enough to see him overtake his long-time rival at the 500 event.

"The tournament is special for me," Federer, a two-time winner in Rotterdam, said. "I remember playing for the first time in 1999 as it was one of the first events where I got the chance to play at the highest level.

"It feels good to join in the celebrations of the 45th edition."

Tournament director Richard Krajicek is "thrilled" by the news Federer will be competing in a strong field, as he joins compatriot Stan Wawrinka, world No 4 Grigor Dimitrov, Alexander Zverev and defending champion Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the draw.

"After his fantastic result at the Australian Open, it is tremendous news that he will be joining us in Rotterdam. It is a crown to the celebration of the history of our tournament," said former Wimbledon champion, Krajicek.

Federer won a record-equalling sixth Australian open title last month

Federer holds the record both for the most time spent at No 1 (302 weeks) and the longest consecutive run at No 1 (237 weeks) while the Swiss great would also surpass Andre Agassi's record as the oldest top-ranked men's player in history since achieving the feat aged 33 years and 131 days in 2003 by more than three years.

Paderborn 0-6 Bayern Munich

Paderborn 0-6 Bayern Munich

Goals: 0-1 coman  (19'), 0-2  Lewandowski (25'), 0-3  kimmich (42'), 0-4  Tolisso (55'), 0-5  Robben (86'), 0-6 Robben (88')

Paderborn made a lively start at the Benteler-Arena, but any hopes of a remarkable upset were extinguished in the space of six minutes, as Kingsley Coman pounced on a loose ball to open the scoring and then teed up Robert Lewandowski for 2-0. Joshua Kimmich got his first DFB Cup goal as he latched onto  Mats Hummels ' long ball and applied a cool finish, as Bayern all but put the game to bed before half-time.

Corentin Tolisso was a first-half substitute for Thomas Muller, who appeared to pick up a knock in the build-up to the first goal, and the France midfielder headed in a fourth from  James Rodriguez’s pinpoint corner early in the second half. Arjen Robben swept in a superb finish from the edge of the area for 5-0 late on, before  Frank Ribery gave him a simple tap-in to round out an extremely one-sided affair.

Match stats

• Bayern have now beaten Paderborn by at least a four-goal margin in all four of their meetings to date.
• This was a repeat of the only Bundesliga meeting between the sides at the Benteler-Arena in February 2015, which Bayern also won 6-0.
• Lewandowski is up to 25 goals for the season in all competitions. The Poland captain's previous best tally is 43 for Bayern in 2016/17.
• Robben was on target in a DFB Cup game for the first time since the 2014 final against Borussia Dortmund - when he put the Bavarians ahead in extra time en route to a 2-0 win.
• Kimmich scored his first ever DFB Cup goal in his 14th appearance in the competition.
• Bayern have now won 20 of their 21 games since Heynckes returned to the helm, scoring 54 goals.

 

Most Expensive Players In Football History

 Most Expensive Players In Football History

With Barcelona striker Neymar making a €222 million switch to Paris Saint-Germain it is yet another moment of transfer records getting shattered.

It also shows that the big clubs in Europe are not shy from spending big money to secure bright talent.

With Barcelona striker Neymar making a €222 million switch to Paris Saint-Germain it is yet another moment of transfer records getting shattered. However, if we take a deeper look at the eight most expensive transfers it can be observed that clubs like Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, Man City and Chelsea have dominated the transfer market in the past few years. While Madrid features the most number of players, others are not far behind. It also shows that the big clubs in Europe are not shy from spending big money to secure bright talent.

Just a year after Manchester United broke the bank to resign Paul Pogba from Juventus, PSG is all set to take up the mantle of the club that has had to cough up the most amount of money in history to sign a single player. As per the latest reports, Brazilian star Neymar is all set to make the switch from Barcelona in a move that may make the latter richer by at least 190 million pounds. Football transfers have always been expensive affairs but, in the past few years, we have seen these transactions involving utterly ridiculous amounts of money.

 Let’s take a look at the top 10 most expensive players in football, for now.

Neymar (Barcelona to PSG, €222 million)

Brazilian star Neymar is one step closer of creating history as he is no longer a Barcelona player after the Spanish giants accepted a payment of €222 million. Now, the 25-year old is set to sign for Paris St-Germain for a world record fee.

Paul Pogba (Juventus to Manchester United, €105 million)

France midfielder Paul Pogba rejoined Manchester United from Serie A club Juventus on a five-year contract, with an option to extend for a further one year. The Old Trafford club splashed out a world record fee of 89 million pounds (€105 million).Pogba was United’s fourth and the last signing in the 2016-17 season. Eric Bailly, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan were the other three players to join United that season.

Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid, €94 million)

Real Madrid managed to convince Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur to sell Gareth Bale. Bale’s signing, which was €100.8 million, surpassed Madrid’s previous record of €94 million when they bought Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United in 2009. Bale had signed a six-year deal.

Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United to Real Madrid, €94 million)

Cristiano Ronaldo’s move to Real Madrid from Premier League club Manchester United was finalised after then manager Sir Alex Ferguson agreed to sell the Portuguese winger. He then joined the Spanish giants for a whopping amount of €94 million. Ronaldo had signed a six-year contract.amount of €94 million. Ronaldo had signed a six-year contract.

Gonzalo Higuain (Napoli to Juventus, €90 million)

Juventus completed the signing of Gonzalo Higuain from Napoli after accepting his €90 million release clause in, making it the most expensive transfer in the history of Italian football.Criticised for his move from Napoli to Juventus, Napoli signed a five-year deal.

Neymar (Santos to Barcelona, €86.2 million)

Barcelona completed Neymar’s move from Santos for €86.2 million. After clearing the medical tests, the Brazilian striker had signed a five-year deal.

Romelu Lukaku (Everton to Manchester United, €84.8 million)

Premier League club Manchester United signed Romelu Lukaku from Everton ahead of the 2017-18 Premier League season. The Everton striker signed a five-year contract with the Old Trafford club. The Belgian joined the Red Devils for an amount of €84.8 million.

Luis Suarez (Liverpool to Barcelona, €82.3 million)

Luis Suarez joined Barcelona after Liverpool agreed to sell the striker for a fee amount of €82.3 million. The Uruguayan signed a five-year deal with the Spanish club.

James Rodriguez (Monaco to Real Madrid, €82.3 million)

Real Madrid signed Colombia forward James Rodriguez for an amount of €82.3 million. Highest scorer of 2014 World Cup, Rodriguez signed a six-year deal with the Spanish giants.

Mohamed Salah: Liverpool star compared to Barcelona legend Lionel Messi

Mohamed Salah: Liverpool star compared to

Barcelona legend Lionel Messi

LIVERPOOL legends Graeme Souness and Jamie Redknapp have both compared Mohamed Salah to Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi.    

Liverpool star Mohamed Salah has been compared to Barcelona's Lionel Messi

Salah is the leading goalscorer in the Premier League with 14 after netting against Bournemouth .

Ahead of the game Redknapp warned Bournemouth they had to show the liverpool winger down the line and don’t let him cut inside onto his left foot.

But Salah was allowed to do just that a number of times in the first half and punished the hosts with a great solo goal.

Souness says the 25-year-old’s movement and touches reminds him of Messi.

Jamie Redknapp on Liverpool star Mohamed Salah

“If you think of lionel messi, Messi’s constantly touching it, open a defender or dangle a leg and he’s away,” Souness said on Sky Sports.

“But we spoke abut him before the game how strong he was and why he’s playing again today, starting today. 

“You see him in that change of direction where he’s got great balance, it’s also about core strength and leg strength to be able to change your balance and wrong foot people.”

Redknapp admits Salah is not yet on the level of Messi.

Redknapp says Mohamed Salah's goal against Bournemouth was typical of Lionel Messi

But he says the goal he bagged at the Vitality Stadium was the type the Barcelona man has scored many a time.

Redknapp said “I’m not putting him on the same level, but the way he’s got that low-centre of gravity and is so strong, you can’t move him.”

Liverpool 2 Tottenham 2: Anfield uproar as hit and miss Harry Kane saves Spurs from the spot

Liverpool 2 Tottenham 2: Anfield uproar as hit and miss Harry Kane saves Spurs from the spot

Harry Kane hit a hundred. And a hurricane of controversy broke out. This was one extraordinary Premier League game. It was a whirlwind, breathless encounter summed up by the most remarkable final 15 minutes, including five chaotic minutes of added time.

At the final whistle the angry chant of “cheat, cheat, cheat” rang out around Anfield, aimed at referee Jon Moss and his assistant Edward Smart, as Tottenham Hotspur courageously salvaged a point against Liverpool.

They scored one penalty and missed another. Neither, Liverpool vehemently argued, should have been given with Kane making a shocking hash of the first one and then coolly despatching the second.

It marked his 100^th Premier League goal. “If you have the personality to score 100 Premier League goals then it’s because you have big, big balls,” manager Mauricio Pochettino said. Kane has the cojones. There was also a message from the striker himself, a player of such iron self-belief. “You can’t give me two tries,” he said, without a hint of arrogance. Well, just a touch.

Kane grabbed the headlines but that should not fully detract from another dazzling display from Mohamed Salah who scored twice. His first took him to 20 Premier League goals in just 25 matches, the quickest a Liverpool player has reach that goal mark, two games ahead of Fernando Torres and Daniel Sturridge.

The first goal was predatory. The second was simply brilliant, a Messi-like effort as he danced past three Spurs defenders deep in injury-time and, in the tightest of spaces inside the penalty area, dinked the ball past goalkeeper Hugo Lloris.

That was a goal worthy of winning any game and it came after another deserving of that status, by Spurs substitute Victor Wanyama. If Salah’s effort was a thing of beauty then the midfielder’s was a beast: a strike of ferocity from fully 25 yards that ripped into the net to stun everyone.

What a game. What an ending. There were two goals of the season, two Kane penalties and two points won, lost, won, lost for Liverpool who led after three minutes, and after 94 minutes, but failed to win.

There were even more talking points: another deserved yellow card for Dele Alli for diving and an imperious performance from Liverpool’s record signing Virgil van Dijk - until he fouled another Spurs substitute, Erik Lamela, for that second penalty concession.

And there was more. Goalkeeper has been a problem area for Liverpool, whatever Klopp says, and having given Loris Karius a run of games to stake his claim, he was rewarded with a quixotic performance: a questionable punch for Spurs' equaliser, a penalty conceded – and then saved.

Pochettino was not exempt. Fresh from the impressive win at home to Manchester United, he initially got his tactics wrong here as he set Spurs in a diamond midfield which was over-run, with Alli deep and Kane isolated. Until changes were made it was only Moussa Dembele holding it together.

Having scored so early against United, Spurs were quickly behind and it was a dire concession. Or, rather, an Eric Dier concession – although Davinson Sanchez did not cover himself in glory either as he contested the ball with Roberto Firmino. It broke to Dier who, facing his own goal, scuffed a back-pass allowing Salah a clear run. Sanchez tried to get back but Salah’s first touch allowed him time to tuck the ball low across Lloris. The clock read just two minutes and 50 seconds.

As poor as Dejan Lovren was when Spurs mauled Liverpool earlier this season, then so was Sanchez who lasted until 70 minutes before being hooked by Pochettino as he scented a way back into this. In fact the substitutions from both managers were interesting as Klopp reacted defensively and even ended up with five at the back after bringing on Joel Matip. 

Novak Djokovic has further procedure on elbow injury after Australian loss

Novak Djokovic has further procedure on elbow injury after Australian loss

Bas du formulaire

Novak Djokovic says he has had a "small medical intervention" on a persistent elbow injury and is "on the good road now to full recovery".

The former world number one returned after six months out when he played at the Australian Open in January.

He lost to unseeded South Korean Chung Hyeon in the last 16 and had treatment on his right elbow during the match.

"It's quite a journey this one, I have to say. I'm learning a lot and for that I'm grateful," said djokovic

"I've always taken care of my body and looked for the most natural ways to heal, and my body has rewarded me with some incredible years on tour.

"I am super positive and excited to follow my recovery through so I can come back to the place I love the most. The court."

Before Melbourne, the Serb, a 12-time Grand Slam champion, had not played since retiring against Tomas Berdych in the quarter-finals of Wimbledon last July.

"I've been carrying this injury for the past two years, and during this time I've been seeing many doctors," said Djokovic.

"I took six months off last season hoping to come back fully recovered, but unfortunately I still felt pain.

"I agreed with my team that I would try different methods after I finished in Australia and a few days ago I accepted a small medical intervention on my elbow.

"It seems like I am on the good road now to full recovery."

Luis Suarez atteint la barre des 100 buts en liga avec le FC Barcelone

Luis Suarez atteint la barre des 100 buts en liga avec 

le FC Barcelone

Lors du festival du FC Barcelone sur la pelouse du Betis (0-5), luis Suarez a atteint la barre symbolique des 100 buts inscrits en Liga sous le maillot blaugrana. En seulement 3 saisons et demi, soit 114 matches de championnat, l'Uruguayen s'est fait une place de choix dans le classement des meilleurs buteurs de l'histoire du Club, à l'instar de Messi, Kubala, César et Eto’o.

C'est la première fois que le ‘charrúa’ arrive à la centaine de buts en championnat avec une équipe. À Liverpool, il avait marqué 69 buts en 110 matches de Premier League, alors qu'à l’Ajax, il avait signé 81 réalisations en 110 rencontres d'Eredivisie.

Les meilleurs souvenirs des supporteurs du Barça concerne évidemment ses buts face au Real Madrid. 'El Pistolero' a d'ailleurs marqué chaque année contre les Merengue. On se souvient aussi de ses quadruplés face au Sporting Gijón et au Deportivo La Corogne. Lors de la saison 2015/16, il parvient même à remporter le Soulier d'Or Européen et le titre de Pichichi grâce à ses 40 buts inscrits.

Cette saison, le '9' du Barça a marqué 15 buts en 17 rencontres de Liga. Lors de sa première saison, il avait marqué 16 buts en championnat, durant la 2ème 40, et la 3ème 29. Si vous faites le calcul, vous arrivez bien à 100 réalisations. Et ce n'est pas fini... Si l'on prend en compte toutes les compétitions, Suarez a inscrit 137 buts en 174 rencontres sous le maillot blaugrana. 

Australian Open: World No 1 Rafael Nadal retires hurt leaving Marin Cilic to face Kyle Edmund in semi-finals

Australian Open: World No 1 Rafael Nadal retires hurt leaving Marin Cilic to

face Kyle Edmund in

semi-finals

Rafael Nadal as won more matches here at the Australian open than at any other Grand Slam tournament except the French Open, but the injury curse which has brought him down so often in the past struck again here on Tuesday.

Nadal twice led by a set in his quarter-final against Marin cilic, but injured a hip muscle in the fourth set and was eventually forced to retire with the Croatian leading 3-6, 6-3, 6-7, 6-2, 2-0. Nadal had been hoping to reach his 27th Grand Slam semi-final, but instead it will be Cilic who will face Britain’s Kyle Edmund on Thursday.

The 31-year-old Spaniard, who was unable to play any warm-up tournaments before arriving here because he was recovering from a knee injury, admitted these were “tough moments”.

He added: “This is not the first time an opportunity has gone for me. I am a positive person, and I can be positive, but today is an opportunity lost to be in the semi-finals of a Grand Slam and to fight for an important title.

 “In this tournament this has already happened to me a couple of times in my life. I really do not want to say that it is frustrating, but it is tough to accept, especially after the tough December that I had without having a chance to start in Abu Dhabi and then Brisbane.

“I worked hard to be here. We did all the things that we believed were the right things to do to be ready. I think I was ready. I was playing OK. I was playing a match in which anything could happen: I could win or I could lose. I am being honest. He was playing well, too.

“But I was fighting for it. I was two sets to one up. I will just have to try to recover, go back home, stay with my people, and keep going. That is all. Always in the tough moments, even if it’s difficult to think this way, there are so many positive things that happened in my career.”

Barcelona rout Real Madrid to go 14 points

 

Real Madrid   0 – 3   Barcelona

Barcelona rout Real Madrid to go 14 points clear of clásico rivals in La Liga

At the beginning of the clásico, a huge banner was unfurled at the south end of the ground welcoming a “White Christmas”. At the end, it was the handful of Barcelona fans high in the opposite stand who celebrated. Way below, their players applauded back, marking a victory whose consequences will be profound: theirs will be happy holidays. Their coach, Ernesto Valverde, insisted that the league is not yet won and Real Madrid’s Zinedine Zidane said the same, but goals from Luis Suárez, Lionel Messi and Aleix Vidal carried the Catalans 14 points ahead of their biggest rivals.

The last time these two teams met, back in August, Gerard Piqué admitted feeling inferior to Madrid. How quickly things change. Twenty-five games have passed since, Barcelona have lost none and by the close here the superiority was theirs, imposed almost by stealth, bit by bit until it was complete.

“It’s a defeat that hurts,” Zidane said. “They were sunk [in August], people said; tomorrow, we’re the ones that are ‘sunk’. We accept that, that’s football. We’re pissed off but Madrid never surrender, no matter what. People can think the league is over but I don’t think so and I don’t think the opposition coach thinks so either.”

With Valencia later losing 1-0 at home to Villarreal, Barça’s lead is up to nine points from Atlético Madrid, who had already lost, at Espanyol on Friday.

The game at the Bernabéu ended with the ball in Real’s net; it had started with the ball in Barcelona’s when Cristiano Ronaldo’s header went in off the bar only for the linesman’s flag to be raised for offside. Then Ronaldo swung and missed by the penalty spot. Ten minutes had gone and with Mateo Kovacic a surprise inclusion detailed to prevent Sergio Busquets from bringing the ball out and Messi from finding time or space the visitors had barely had possession.

“We struggled to overcome that pressure,” Valverde said, yet it also appeared they were in no hurry. They arrived with an 11-point lead over their hosts, after all, and as Valverde had warned: “It is when you think you’re on top that Madrid hit you.”

Those fears were borne out: Thomas Vermaelen brought down Luka Modric as he broke through; Ronaldo shot against Sergi Roberto and another Ronaldo effort hit goalkeeper Marc-André ter Stegen’s foot. Karim Benzema then hit the post from Marcelo’s cross.

For Barcelona, Paulinho had two good chances. Messi clipped a wonderful ball into the midfielder’s run and his excellent shot was pushed over by Keylor Navas after half an hour before the goalkeeper saved a near-post header. From the corner, Piqué’s header hit Dani Carvajal and Messi’s 45th-minute free-kick thudded against Ronaldo’s head. As they departed at half time, he held out a hand. When they reappeared, the visitors asserted themselves.

Madrid appeared to take a step back, symbolised by Kovacic’s shift from Busquets to Messi, although Valverde suggested that was more a consequence of his side’s improvement than a conscious decision. Andrés Iniesta released Jordi Alba, but Luis Suárez’s shot was under-hit.

A minute later Busquets turned near his own area. Stepping away from Toni Kroos, he found Ivan Rakitic. The space opened up in front of him, Kovacic heading out of his path to follow Messi, and Rakitic laid it to Sergi, who crossed for Suárez to score.

Madrid were preparing a change, Gareth Bale and Marco Asensio standing at the side of the pitch, when Barcelona doubled the lead. Messi put Suárez clear, Navas saved the first shot but Messi collected the rebound and returned it to Suárez, whose second effort came off the post to Paulinho. From his header Carvajal made a neat one-handed save. Paulinho bundled the ball over the line, but the referee blew, pulled out a red card and pointed to the spot, from where Messi thumped in the penalty.

Carvajal walked, head down and 10 minutes later, Bale and Asensio were introduced, a last attempt to break Catalan control. Messi drew another save from Navas, who also stopped Nélson Semedo. Twice more Navas denied Messi but Madrid had not given up. Ter Stegen made a fantastic save from Bale, then blocked a Sergio Ramos effort. There was still time, but it was Barcelona who used it. Messi evaded Marcelo and crossed for Vidal to score. He had been on the pitch less than a minute.