Ole Gunnar Solskjaer thinks Manchester United have little hope of challenging for the Premier League title next season, convinced such an achievement would be miraculous .
United can only finish as high as fifth this term after another underwhelming season in the post-Alex Ferguson era.
Their form picked up initially after Jose Mourinho was sacked and replaced by Solskjaer at the end of 2018, but since the Norwegian took charge permanently in March there has been a sharp downturn.
Any hope of Champions League qualification vanished with last week s lacklustre 1-1 draw at rock-bottom Huddersfield Town.
They could yet finish the season 32 points off the top of the table and Solskjaer is well aware of the job facing him.
I think I ve been quite hon…
Cagliari earned promotion back to the Serie A after confirming a top-two finish with a 3-0 win over Bari on Friday.
Cagliari, who were relegated from Italy s top-tier competition in 2014-15, needed just one season to recapture promotion.
Joao Pedro opened the scoring in the 24th minute at the Stadio Comunale San Nicola, silencing the home supporters with a well-taken finish from outside the area.
Fellow Brazilian Diego Farias doubled their advantage four minutes into the second half, before substitute Alberto Cerri confirmed the result with an emphatic finish three minutes from time.
The win saw Cagliari move 11 points ahead of third-place Trapani, with three games left in their season.
Cagliari can also claim the Serie B title if they win…
Everton keeper Joel Robles may have missed the decisive penalty against West Ham in the FA Cup, but he was outstanding during normal and extra time
Everton exited the FA Cup last night, losing their third round replay 9-8 on penalties against West Ham at the Boleyn Ground, after a 2-2 draw in normal and extra-time.
It was a pulsating game that could have gone either way, but in the end it was the Irons keeper Adrian who scored the winning penalty, after opposite number Joel Robles had smashed his spot-kick against the bar.
Brave
The visitors went down to ten men on 56 minutes, as winger Aiden McGeady was shown a red card for a second bookable offence.
The Republic of Ireland’s stars tackle was a silly one to pick-up his second booking of the g…
Eddie Howe has signed a new long-term contract with Newcastle United on the eve of their first Premier League game of the season against Nottingham Forest.
Howe was appointed as Magpies boss last November on a deal until 2024 following the sacking of Steve Bruce.
Newcastle s wealthy owners charged the former Bournemouth manager with the task of guiding the club out of the Premier League relegation zone to safety at the start of a new era following their takeover.
It was very much mission accomplished for the 44-year-old, as the Tyneside club surged up the table to finish last season in 11th place.
Howe was on Friday rewarded with a new deal as his side prepare to take on top-flight newcomers Forest at St James Park.
It s a great feeling to com…
Didier Deschamps has expressed concern about how the coach of the France women s team was ousted from power after a player revolt.
Three players, led by captain Wendie Renard, went public by stating they would not play on for Les Bleus under the then-existing regime.
The French Football Federation (FFF) elected to sack Diacre on March 9 after acknowledging her relationship with players had reached a point of no return which harms the interests of the national team .
It was a decision that ended a sometimes controversial reign, with the move coming ahead of France competing at this year s Women s World Cup, which takes place in July and August in Australia and New Zealand.
Deschamps has never faced such a situation, but he appears to have reservations abou…
Sergi Roberto insists he never had any intention of leaving Barcelona after officially signing a new contract with the LaLiga leaders.
The 26-year-old who started out his career playing in midfield but more recently has been converted into a right-back revealed he had dismissed interest from other clubs to pledge his future to Barca until 2022.
A regular under head coach Ernesto Valverde this season, Roberto has helped his boyhood club establish a seven-point lead over nearest rivals Atletico Madrid at the top of the table.
Since I started talking about the renewal, I wanted to be here. It s my club, he said at a press conference at Camp Nou.
It s true that other teams were interested, but I wanted to be here and I m happy to have renewed until 2022. An…
Bayern Munich attacker Thomas Muller has underlined the importance of Arjen Robben to the Bundesliga champions and hopes the Netherlands international will soon be fully match fit again.
The winger missed the latter stages of the 2015-16 campaign due to injury and made his comeback in the 4-3 friendly win over Lippstadt at the weekend.
However, Robben suffered a groin problem that will keep him out of action for six weeks and Muller has lamented the Dutchman s rotten luck.
Arjen s latest injury is extremely bitter for him, Muller told Spox.
I would not want to be in his shoes now. He had just fought back from another injury.
I hope that he will soon be fully fit again and will then be available for a longer period of time. Bayern need Arjen.…
Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger admits rushing Jack Wilshere back from injury so the midfielder could play in Saturday s win over Norwich.
The 21-year-old, who was sidelined for the entire 2011/12 campaign, had sat out the Gunners previous four matches with an ankle injury before making his return at the Emirates Stadium.
Wenger reinstalled Wilshere to his starting 11 sooner than had been expected and the Frenchman concedes the England international was not completely ready for action.
But Wenger insists he was not ignoring the advice of the club s medical staff.
I rushed Jack back a bit; he was not completely ready, the manager told Arsenal s official website.
How careful must I be? To listen well to the medical advice and that is what I have to…
Wigan desperately need points from their meeting with West Brom on Saturday as the games run out in their Premier League survival bid.
Roberto Martinez s side occupy the final relegation spot and trail 17th-placed Newcastle by five points, albeit with a game in hand.
Their clash with West Brom at the Hawthorns is followed by a game against Swansea on Tuesday and the two fixtures will doubtless go a long way to deciding the club s fate.
Wigan have not won a league game since their 1-0 home victory over Norwich at the end of March and missed out on ending that run by conceding in the 89th minute to draw with Tottenham last time out.
Martinez s men are famed for their habit of escaping from the drop zone in the latter stages of the season and won seven of their final nine f…
Memphis Depay is expected to be out for the rest of the season due to a serious knee injury, says Lyon sporting director Juninho.
Depay was substituted at half-time during Sunday s Ligue 1 defeat at home to Rennes, having initially been hurt in a tussle with Hamari Traore.
The forward sustained a suspected anterior cruciate ligament injury to his left knee that could rule him out of action for several months.
Depay now faces a battle to return in time to feature for Netherlands at Euro 2020.
We expect Memphis injury to be quite serious, Juninho told OL TV.
We expect it to keep him out for the rest of the season. He s our captain and I m sad for him.
: It s a very negative evening. We have to show more. We were lucky to still be level…