De Gea? If I were Real Madrid, I´d think of another player – Mourinho

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has told Real Madrid to forget about signing star goalkeeper David de Gea, advising the Spanish and European champions to look elsewhere.

Madrid hold a long-standing interest in Spain international De Gea, who almost joined the LaLiga giants in mid-2015.

The 27-year-old former Atletico Madrid keeper – contracted to United until 2019 – continues to be linked with Zinedine Zidane s men.

However, Mourinho is confident De Gea will remain at Old Trafford beyond the season.

I think he will stay, Mourinho told La Sexta ahead of Tuesday s Champions League meeting with Sevilla.

I don t know what Real Madrid s intentions are, but if I were them, I would think of another player.

De Gea has enjoyed anothe…

Real Madrid signing Rodrygo ´one of the great prodigies´

Real Madrid have signed one of the great prodigies in Rodrygo Goes, according to club president Florentino Perez.

Brazilian 18-year-old Rodrygo was presented as a new Madrid player at the Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday, a year after the club shelled out a reported €45million to sign him from Santos.

The teenager made 80 appearances in all competitions after making his Santos debut in November 2017 and Perez is excited to see him in action for Madrid.

Our strategy is always about finding emerging talent, incorporating young players who want to mark an era in Real Madrid. Today we have a prodigious talent joining us, said Perez.

This footballer already provokes admiration for his game in a country [Brazil] where admiration for football is a way of life. O…

Van Dijk: Netherlands have to look at ourselves in the mirror after Belarus close call

Virgil van Dijk admitted Netherlands were out of sorts in Belarus after they relied on the brilliance of Georginio Wijnaldum to secure a narrow victory.

The 2-1 success in Minsk puts Netherlands on the brink of qualifying for Euro 2020, ending the team s recent exile from major tournament football.

After missing out on Euro 2016 and last year s World Cup, Netherlands finally appear to have got their act together under coach Ronald Koeman s leadership.

Van Dijk s Liverpool team-mate Wijnaldum scored both goals for the Dutch, heading in a clinical opener before thundering in a long-range strike to give the visitors a 2-0 half-time cushion.

Wijnaldum later said his second of the night was by far the best of the 15 goals he has netted for his country.

´Unplayable´ Rashford must deliver every time he plays, says England team-mate Shaw

Luke Shaw challenged Marcus Rashford to match his unplayable display against Wales throughout the rest of England s World Cup campaign.

Rashford scored England s opener and their final goal in a 3-0 win over their British rivals at Ahmad bin Ali Stadium on Tuesday.

The victory sent England into the last 16 as Group B winners, and they will now face Senegal for a place in the quarter-finals.

Rashford, one of four new faces introduced by Gareth Southgate for the game, curled in a wonderful free-kick to break the deadlock early in the second half, before he doubled his tally with a low shot after a mazy run, with Wales goalkeeper Danny Ward allowing the ball through his legs.

After becoming the first Manchester United player to score three goals at a World C…

Simeone seeking personal improvement as he marks a decade at Atletico Madrid

Diego Simeone is hoping to emerge as a better coach following Atletico Madrid s poor run of form as he prepares to celebrate a decade in charge.

Atleti went down 2-1 to Sevilla on Saturday and have lost three LaLiga games under Simeone for the first time ahead of Wednesday s trip to Granada.

That match comes a day before the Argentinian officially marks 10 years since replacing Gregorio Manzano at Atleti.

While Simeone has enjoyed a hugely successful period as head coach, the 51-year-old has spent most of this season fending off criticism.

But speaking ahead of his side s final outing of 2021, Simeone vowed to stick by his principles in order to turn things around.

Criticism is understandable and normal, he said at Tuesday s news conference pr…

Moritz to leave Schalke for Mainz

Schalke have confirmed holding midfielder Christoph Moritz will leave the club for Mainz at the end of the season.

The 23-year-old had an expiring contract with Schalke, and has now opted for a move elsewhere rather than ink a new deal.

Moritz, who has been capped by Germany at Under-21 level, has signed a contract until the end of the 2016/17 season with his new club.

The midfielder came through the ranks of the Alemannia Aachen youth academy, and joined Schalke in 2009.

He has since made 52 Bundesliga appearances for the Champions League hopefuls, but has failed to become a first team regular.

Moritz is currently recovering from torn knee ligaments.

Sneijder issues warning to Real

Wesley Sneijder says his goal in the 3-1 win over Kayserispor sent a message to Real Madrid ahead of the Champions League quarter-final.

The Galatasaray midfielder played for Madrid between 2007 and 2009 and timed his strike to perfection, with Jose Mourinho, who coached the Netherlands international during his time with Inter, watching on from the stands.

Scoring that goal sent the message that they should be careful, the 28-year-old told reporters.

I ve not seen him (Mourinho) in a long time. It was very good to see my old teacher for the first time since the Champions League final against Bayern.

Mourinho s former Chelsea striker Didier Drogba also featured for Gala, while ex-Madrid midfielder Hamit Altintop came off injured and is a doubt for the C…

James: Colombia eyeing at least World Cup semis

Colombia star James Rodriguez hopes he can lead his team into at least the World Cup semi-finals in Russia.

The South Americans are coming off their best result at the showpiece tournament, having reached the quarter-finals in Brazil in 2014.

James, 26, believes the nation can produce even better later this year after being drawn with Poland, Senegal and Japan in Group H.

I want to have a good World Cup and help my team-mates get to the semi-finals or the final – why not? he told bundesliga.com.

James has enjoyed a fine first season at Bayern Munich after joining the Bundesliga giants on loan from Real Madrid.

Asked about Colombia potentially meeting defending champions Germany in the World Cup final, James was open to such a clash.

Ye…

Manuel Pellegrini could be a shrewd appointment for West Ham

West Ham have been treading water for a couple of years in the Premier League. This season saw the Irons in a relegation battle for much of the campaign.

In the end, boss David Moyes guided the side from East London to safety. However, the former Everton boss was only on a short-term deal with the Hammers. The club decided not to renew Moyes contract and looked elsewhere for a new boss.

In truth, their choice of Chilean boss Manuel Pellegrini could prove to be an inspired one by the club hierarchy, who really need to get the fans back on side following problems on and off the pitch in recent years.

A succesful boss

In terms of experience and quality, I highly doubt that West Ham could have attracted a better or more experienced boss to the club. Pellegrini is t…

Goals at three World Cups and 50 for the Socceroos – Cahill´s international career in numbers

Tim Cahill announced his retirement from international football after an Australia career that will see him go down as arguably the greatest ever Socceroo.

Cahill, 38, retired after scoring a record 50 goals in 107 appearances for Australia.

We take a look at his international career with the help of Opta data.

 

3  Cahill scored at three World Cups. Only Miroslav Klose, Cristiano Ronaldo, Uwe Seeler and Pele have scored at more (4).

5 He netted five times against Japan, the most he struck against any nation.

38 Cahill has scored five (38 per cent) of the Socceroos 13 World Cup goals.

38% Tim Cahill has scored 38% (5/13) of all goals at the (Jedinak 3, Holman 2, Moore 1, Kewell 1, Aloisi 1). Beacon.

— OptaJason (@Opt…