Euro 2016 dream still alive for Mathieu

Jeremy Mathieu could be fit for the Euro 2016 finals after Barcelona confirmed he should return to action within eight weeks.

The 32-year-old suffered a torn meniscus in his right knee during France s 4-2 friendly win over Russia this week and underwent surgery on Thursday.

It was feared that Mathieu would miss the remainder of the club season and be unavailable for the Euros in France, which begin on June 10, but Barcelona expect him to be available again by the end of May, meaning he retains an outside chance of being available for Didier Deschamps final squad.

Barcelona defender Jeremy Mathieu has been operated on successfully, a club statement read. The player will be out for approximately six to eight weeks.

Mathieu had earlier stated that his reco…

Real Madrid 3-0 Cadiz: Ancelotti´s side on brink of clinching LaLiga title

Goals from Brahim Diaz, Jude Bellingham and Joselu earned LaLiga leaders Real Madrid a 3-0 win over lowly Cadiz.

Carlo Ancelotti s side will seal a record-extending 36th Spanish title later on Saturday if Barcelona fail to beat Girona.

With four games remaining, Real climbed to 87 points and extended their lead to 14 points over second-placed Barcelona and 16 clear Girona in third.

Real manager Ancelotti rested several key players ahead of their Champions League semi-final against Bayern Munich and his side did more than enough to secure the three points.

— Real Madrid C.F.(@realmadriden)

After dominating the first half, they finally managed to break the deadlock with Diaz first netting a curling shot from the edge of the box in the 5…

Fernandes ´perfectly aware´ Man Utd not title contenders, defends under-fire Casemiro

Bruno Fernandes is perfectly aware Manchester United are not ready for a Premier League title challenge but has defended his under-fire team-mate Casemiro after Sunday s loss to Liverpool.

United entered the first international break of the season 14th in the table with just three points, suffering back-to-back defeats to Brighton and Hove Albion and Liverpool.

A Luis Diaz brace and a Mohamed Salah strike condemned United to another embarrassing defeat at the hands of their old rivals, as Ten Hag became the first Red Devils manager to lose three home Premier League games by three or more goals within the space of a year.

United were also beaten 3-0 by Manchester City last October and fell to the same scoreline versus Bournemouth two months later.

Ten Hag …

´Why not?´ – Former Spain captain Boquete tips Wiegman to succeed Southgate

Sarina Wiegman is an outstanding coach and could succeed Gareth Southgate as manager of the England men s national team, says former Spain captain Veronica Boquete.

With reports suggesting Southgate may depart after he leads the Three Lions to his fourth major tournament at Euro 2024, various coaches have been touted as potential successors.

Manchester City s Pep Guardiola is a reported target for the Football Association, but Wiegman s name has also been mentioned after she led the Lionesses to Euro 2022 glory last year.

Wiegman was denied another trophy as England were beaten by Spain in last month s Women s World Cup final, but Boquete remains convinced by her work with the Lionesses.

The 36-year-old midfielder – who captained her country at the 20…

Carvajal furious at missing Euro 2016

Dani Carvajal was left furious at the news that he will miss Euro 2016 as a result of an injury picked up in the Champions League final.

The 24-year-old sustained a muscle injury in Real Madrid s clash with Atletico Madrid at San Siro and has been replaced by Hector Bellerin in Vicente del Bosque s Spain squad.

And the full-back admits that it feels as though his hard work to force his way into the national team reckoning has all been for nothing.

After the last call-up when I was left out, I worked a lot to be on the preliminary list, and now look. I ve got a lot of suppressed anger, he told Cadena COPE s El Partido de las 12.

You fight for two years to try to be in the group and I ve been let down by bad luck.

I spent two weeks with a little …

Philadelphia Union v New York Red Bulls: Schwarz expecting tough encounter against the Union despite

New York Red Bulls head coach Sandro Schwarz believes his side must improve against a ‘tough’ Philadelphia Union side ahead of their encounter at Subaru Park.

The Red Bulls maintained their four-match unbeaten run with a 2-2 draw against DC United last time out, aided by Cristian Dajome’s early dismissal for the visitors.

Schwarz’s side sit fifth in the Eastern Conference and are among a cluster of teams tightly packed in the middle of the division, with every victory important at the halfway stage of the season.

The Red Bulls head coach praised his side’s mentality to gain a point against the Black and Red’s last time out but expects a difficult match against the Union.

“I think what we have to improve, especially with our ball position is …

David Moyes ready for ‘biggest moment’ of career in first European final

David Moyes admitted it was “surreal” to walk out at the Eden Arena in Prague preparing for his first European final, the “biggest moment” of his career.

Moyes’ West Ham face Italian side Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League final in the Czech capital on Wednesday night.

The 60-year-old, who began his managerial career with Preston in 1998, is yet to lift a major piece of silverware, the Community Shield with Manchester United in 2013 notwithstanding.

Moyes is looking to become the first British manager since Sir Alex Ferguson, the man he replaced at the then champions, to lift a trophy, and join the former United boss in the pantheon of great Scottish managers in the English game.

Moyes, who has attended plenty of European finals in his r…

Blatter offers ´unconditional´ backing to Russia 2018

FIFA president Sepp Blatter has offered his unconditional support to Russia s hosting of the 2018 World Cup.

Recent reports suggested some European nations would consider boycotting the tournament due to the conflict in neighbouring Ukraine.

However, Blatter warned against such action on Tuesday, claiming that nothing good would come of it and comparing the situation to Russia s hosting of the 2014 Winter Olympics.

FIFA unconditionally supports the staging of the World Cup by Russia, he said. A boycott will never give any positive effect. We trust the country, its government.

Russia is the world s biggest country. You know, Russia is in the eye of the international media. Football cannot only unite Russia but show the whole world that it is stronger tha…

Dykes ruled out of Euro 2024 for Scotland

Scotland striker Lyndon Dykes has been ruled out of Euro 2024 after picking up an injury in training on Friday.

While preparing for their upcoming friendly against Gibraltar, Dykes left the training pitch on a stretcher with an apparent knee injury.

On Saturday, Scotland confirmed that the 28-year-old will miss the tournament, though the injury has not been specified.

Dykes has scored nine goals for Scotland in 36 appearances, and played in all eight of their Euro 2024 qualifiers, scoring once.

Steve Clarke s side will begin the tournament against hosts Germany in the opening match on June 14.

Following an injury in training yesterday, Lyndon Dykes has been ruled out of the squad for UEFA EURO 2024.

We’re gutted for you, Lyndon, but know…

Wayne Rooney rules out England return for 2018 World Cup

Wayne Rooney has no intention to come out of international retirement to try and help England at the 2018 World Cup should they qualify.

England s record goalscorer called time on his career with the national team in August after falling out of favour with Gareth Southgate due to a lack of playing time at Manchester United.

Two goals in his first two matches for Everton this season had led to calls for a recall, but Rooney retired before Southgate named his squad to play Malta and Slovakia.

And the 31-year-old insists there will be no come back to help England in Russia next year, the striker believing it is time for the next generation to take the team forward.

My mind is made up, Rooney, who was charged with drink driving on Friday, told talkSPORT. I h…