Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone says he is learning more than ever this season and expects another examination of his managerial abilities from Arsene Wenger.

The Rojiblancos were drawn against Arsenal in the Europa League semi-finals on Friday having narrowly ousted Sporting CP in the previous round.

The 2-1 aggregate victory put them within touching distance of a third appearance in the competition s final in the space of nine seasons, Simeone having masterminded victory in 2012.

But, amid a campaign where Simeone is learning most about being a coach , the 47-year-old is braced for a difficult battle with Wenger.

With their history they are a very strong rival, Simeone said of the Gunners.

They have a very important coach who is very c…

Edin Dzeko has put pen to paper on a new four year deal with Premier League champions Manchester City, .

The Bosnia and Herzegovina international moved to the Etihad Stadium from Wolfsburg in January 2011 and has since gone on to make one hundred and fifty-four appearances in all competitions, scoring sixty-six goals.

He has won two Premier League titles, the FA Cup and the League Cup, to add to the Bundesliga title he landed in 2009.

Internationally, the 28 year old has been capped sixty-five times, with three of those appearances coming at this summer’s World Cup finals in Brazil while he scored his thirty-sixth goal for his country in the 3-1 over Iran in the group stages of the competition.

He was City’s second top scorer last season with t…

Virgil van Dijk believes Xherdan Shaqiri s game-breaking performances can be a vital ingredient in Liverpool s title charge.

Switzerland international Shaqiri came off the bench to score a second-half brace on Sunday, sealing a 3-1 win over bitter rivals Manchester United.

The 27-year-old now has five goals in 13 Premier League appearances since joining the Reds from Stoke and Van Dijk has been a fan since Shaqiri s spectacular overhead kick in the pre-season friendly triumph against United in the United States.

In the end, big Shaq came on and did the job for us. He is a fantastic player, the centre-back told Liverpool s official website.

He showed it since the first game against Manchester United in America. He is something different and sometimes tha…

Rafael Benitez is looking forward to taking his Newcastle United side to Anfield to face former club Liverpool following the Premier League fixtures release on Wednesday.

The Spaniard managed Liverpool between 2004 and 2010, leading the club to Champions League and FA Cup glory during his spell on Merseyside.

Newcastle face Liverpool at St James Park on September 30 before travelling to Anfield on March 3, with Benitez excited by the reunion.

Obviously I look forward to the two games with Liverpool, Benitez told the Newcastle website. Those days will be extra special for me, but really every game is exciting and every game has its own challenges.

It will be nice, too, to come up against Chris Hughton and his Brighton side again this season. This will be…

Mexico captain Edson Alvarez will miss the remainder of the Copa America after suffering a hamstring injury in their opening match against Jamaica.

Alvarez was in tears as he left the pitch just 30 minutes into El Tri s 1-0 victory in Houston on Saturday, having gone down clutching his right hamstring.

It has now been confirmed that the West Ham midfielder will play no further part in Mexico s campaign, which continues against Venezuela on Wednesday.

In a video posted to the team s social media accounts, Alvarez said: I had that dream just like my team-mates but sometimes these things happen in football and I will have to learn and grow from all this.

Incondicionales,, nuestro capitán en esta América, tiene un mensaje para ustedes.

¡Seguimos , …

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain s best position is central midfield, according to his Arsenal team-mate Danny Welbeck.

The 23-year-old has been used in a variety of roles by Arsene Wenger since joining the Gunners from Southampton in 2011, even finding himself playing at wing-back in the second half of last season.

Oxlade-Chamberlain, who has been linked with a move away from Emirates Stadium, is believed to favour a central role, a preference endorsed by his fellow England international.  

Asked what his colleague s best position is, Welbeck told Arsenal Player: With the quality he has and with his ability on the ball… I d say centre mid.

I feel like he s got the ability. I like it when he gets the ball in central mid, he knows that I can run in behind and h…

England s record goalscorer Wayne Rooney has announced his retirement from international football.

The Everton striker, 31, won 119 caps, putting him second only to Peter Shilton, and scored 53 goals since making his debut in February 2003, breaking Bobby Charlton s national record of 49 in September 2015.

Rooney was permanent England captain since replacing Steven Gerrard in the role after the 2014 World Cup.

He last played for his country against Scotland in November 2016 and had not scored for the national side since his strike against Iceland as England crashed out of Euro 2016 at the last-16 stage.

Rooney had been tipped for a recall after scoring twice in his first two Premier League games – taking his top-flight tally to 200 – since returning…

Radja Nainggolan wants a flawless performance from Roma when they attempt to defeat BATE and seal progression to the knockout stages of the Champions League.

Rudi Garcia s men sit second in Group E ahead of matchday six with five points from as many games and will book their ticket to the next round with a win at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday.

Roma have been struggling to find their best form in recent weeks, though, and Nainggolan is desperate to end their four-game winless streak when the Belarusian side arrive in the Italian capital.

I think the good times will return. We have belief in the squad, we re a strong group and we re just waiting to get back to winning ways, the Belgium international told reporters.

Wednesday s Champions League match wi…

According to a recent report from Sky Sports, Liverpool are said to be interested in Borussia Monchengladbach star Matthias Ginter. The 25 year old has been with the German club since back in 2017, when he made the jump over from Borussia Dortmund. He’s considered to be one of the best defenders in the Bundesliga, which is likely one of the reasons why he’s been a featured member of the German national team since debuting in 2014.

The Reds are currently in the midst of a Premier League title battle with Manchester City, but even with that being the case, it’s never too early to look ahead to the summer.

Liverpool are already pretty solid defensively, but the addition of someone like Ginter certainly wouldn’t hurt their cause. He’s wise beyond his years, he’s…

Claudio Ranieri is setting his sights higher than just Premier League survival after being appointed Fulham s new manager.

Former Chelsea and Leicester City boss Ranieri replaced the sacked Slavisa Jokanovic on Wednesday after signing a multi-year  contract, with Fulham stuck at the bottom of the table on five points.

Fulham were among the Premier League s highest spenders in the last transfer window, spending approximately £100million to bolster their squad following promotion from the Championship.

Jean Seri, previously linked with Barcelona, was among the eye-catching arrivals, while World Cup winner Andre Schurrle also signed, as well as Aleksandar Mitrovic and Alfie Mawson.

But Jokanovic was unable to muster a winning formula this term, losing his…