Mata staying at Man Utd after signing one-year deal

It was certainly a glorious evening for Liverpool as they put four goals past Manchester United at Old Trafford on Thursday, conceding two in return. Not many would have expected it, not even among the Liverpool supporters, given the respective states of affairs regarding the two teams and their recent exploits.

What s more, this was Jurgen Klopp s first triumph as the Liverpool boss at the home of their greatest rivals. They had not managed it since 2014, when two penalties converted by Steven Gerrard and a skillful finish by Luis Suarez gave Brendan Rodgers Liverpool a 0-3 win against David Moyes Manchester United.

On the other hand, this match held little competitive importance for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and his men. Manchester City are already the new Premier League c…

Cristiano Ronaldo would have hoped to have scored his 100th Portugal goal against Belgium on Friday.

The Juventus superstar is on 99 international strikes and is set to become just the second male player to reach a century, quickly closing on Ali Daei s record tally of 109 for Iran.

But amid the coronavirus pandemic, Portugal s March internationals have been cancelled.

Ronaldo will have to wait until later in the year at the earliest to bring up another career landmark, unable to take on either Belgium or Croatia.

There are plenty of highlights from his previous 99 Portugal goals, though, and we have selected five of the best.

Love this feeling

— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano)

Denmark v Portugal (October 11, 2011)

Ronaldo…

Real Madrid s stranglehold on the Champions League came to an unceremonious and humiliating end against Ajax on Tuesday.

A stunned and angry Santiago Bernabeu watched on in disbelief as the Eredivisie side thumped the three-time defending champions 4-1 to secure a remarkable 5-3 aggregate triumph.

It marked the first time Madrid have been knocked out in the last 16 since the 2009-10 season, while not since 2012-13 have the previous season s winners failed to make the last eight (Chelsea were knocked out in the group stages).

Santiago Solari s short reign as head coach is now in a perilous position with the shambolic surrender following back-to-back Clasico defeats to Barcelona that ended their Copa del Rey and LaLiga title ambitions.

The Spanish press ha…

Diego Simeone insisted Kieran Trippier is an important player to Atletico Madrid but suggested the right-back may leave the club amid talk of a move to Newcastle.

Eddie Howe s side head into their first transfer window following the Saudi Arabian-backed takeover in October, with Newcastle reportedly submitting a formal bid to make Trippier the first signing of their new era.

The experienced Trippier has repeatedly been linked with a mid-season switch to Newcastle, having impressed during his stint in the Spanish capital, and has also previously been suggested as a target of Manchester United, Arsenal and Everton.

Trippier, who joined the reigning LaLiga champions from Tottenham in July 2019, has managed 67 top-flight appearances for Atletico, while Howe has pre…

Saturday s 6-0 win over Watford in the FA Cup final at Wembley made Manchester City the first men s team in history to complete a clean sweep of English football s major honours in the same season.

Raheem Sterling dispatched the decisive penalty in the shoot-out against Chelsea after February s EFL Cup final at the same venue finished goalless, while City edged out Liverpool in an epic Premier League title race by beating Brighton and Hove Albion 4-1 last weekend.

Sterling and Gabriel Jesus then both scored twice on Saturday as City completed the treble, adding to a superb career body of work for manager Pep Guardiola.

But where does this City rank among the other finest teams since the Premier League rebrand of 1992-93 heralded the multi-million-pound era?

Former Tottenham striker Teddy Sheringham has praised the understanding of Harry Kane and Son Heung-Min as the duo close in on a Premier League record.

Kane and Son have directly combined for 35 goals in the English top flight since the South Korea international s move from Bayer Leverkusen in August 2015.

The Spurs pair, who successfully linked up again in last weekend s win at Newcastle United, are now just one behind the leading tally of 36 set by Chelsea s Frank Lampard and Didier Drogba ahead of a London derby with West Ham United on Sunday.

And Sheringham, who scored 124 goals in 277 appearances across two spells for Spurs, is hopeful Kane and Son can continue to link up in such devastating fashion.

In an exclusive interview, the 55-year-old told S…

Ange Postecoglou is in the midst of the biggest job an Australian coach has held in men s club football.

Postecoglou changed the landscape of the game in Australia and left a legacy in Japan, where he conquered the J1 League with Yokohama F.Marinos before he was lured to Glasgow by a wounded Scottish powerhouse Celtic, dethroned by bitter rivals Rangers.

After some initial backlash, Postecoglou has Celtic fans dreaming of glory through an emphasis on a high-octane style of attacking football and unrelenting belief in his philosophy.

But to get a clear picture of Postecoglou – the most decorated coach in Australian football – and his journey to Parkhead, you have to go back to his days at boyhood club South Melbourne.

Most know about Postecoglou s love…

Javier Chicharito Hernandez and his redemption story continues to gather pace after his hat-trick guided LA Galaxy past New York Red Bulls 3-2.

Former Manchester United and Real Madrid striker Chicharito endured a difficult and injury-plagued 2020 season, Mexico s all-time leading goalscorer netting just twice after joining the Galaxy.

But Chicharito is enjoying a red-hot start to the 2021 campaign, taking his tally to five goals in two matches to begin the season following his treble against the Red Bulls.

Not since 2010 had the Galaxy opened their season with back-to-back wins, but that changed at Dignity Health Sports Park on Sunday.

HAT TRICK HERO scores his third goal of the afternoon 

— LA Galaxy (@LAGalaxy)

Chicharito opened th…

Arsenal are keen on signing Victor Osimhen from Napoli in the summer transfer window, according to TEAMtalk. The report has claimed that the Napoli and Nigeria international striker wants £200,000 per week as salary at his next club, and that Arsenal are ready to pay that.

The Gunners, though, are not the only club who are keen on Osimhen. Chelsea are also interested in signing the Nigeria international striker, but the former Premier League and UEFA Champions League winners have reservations over paying too much in salary. Paris Saint-Germain want the 25-year-old as well and are ready to pay big for him.

Osimhen is one of the best strikers in the world. He has been on the books of Napoli since 2020 and has been a huge hit at the Italian club. The striker has scored 11…

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In what could be an enjoyable affair from the Philips Stadion on Tuesday night, PSV and Monaco will meet for their Champions League qualifying second-leg.

Starting with the hosts, while PSV were disappointed to have thrown away their first-leg advantage out in France last week, Ruud van Nistelrooy s men should find the mood in their camp at a high. Eventually leaving Monaco with a 1-1 draw seven days ago, the ex-Manchester United icon saw his side pick up some perfect momentum over the weekend. Opening up the 2022/23 Eredivisie campaign with a thumping 4-1 romp against Emmen on home soil, the Dutch giants have their sights set on mounting another title charge this season. Stunning bitter rivals Ajax on July 30th as they claimed this ye…