England forward Daniel Sturridge explained his actions after being caught on his phone during the side s 2-1 friendly win over Australia last month. 

Sturridge, who missed the game through injury, was sat behind the England bench and had been spotted using his phone during the contest at the Stadium of Light in Sunderland. 

Images of Sturridge using the device drew heavy criticism via social media, but the Liverpool forward explained just why he was using his phone, and insists England manager Roy Hodgson had no issue with it.

That night was my first annual charity event in Birmingham. My family had put the event on and were texting me, the 26-year-old revealed.

I wasn t sat on the bench, I was behind the bench [because of injury].

Of cou…

Deportivo Toluca have crowned themselves champions of Mexico, beating Cruz Azul 7-6 on penalties after a 2-2 aggregate result in the final.

After winning the away match 0-2, Toluca appeared to be heading for victory but things weren t as simple in the return leg.

Vela scored the opener for Cruz Azul four minutes after the interval and Dominguez made it 0-2 with 12 minutes left to play. Penalties were needed to determine which of the two sides would win the 2008 Apertura.

Both sides converted their first six penalties but Toluca keeper Cristante then parried Vela s spot kick to give Miguel Almazan a chance to decide the championship.

The defender s effort hit the crossbar but bounced in from keeper Gutierrez back for a dramatic climax and Toluca s first t…

Brazilian manager Zico is about to add yet another adventure to his career, as he is ready to sign a deal with Russian giants CSKA Moscow.

Zico is to replace Valery Gazzaev, who recently resigned from his position.

The 55-year-old Brazilian has a rather exotic resume, having coached Japanese side Kashima Antlers before taking the reigns at the country s national team. In 2006, Zico moved to Fenerbahce and in September 2008 he tried his luck at Uzbek side Bunyodkor, whom he recently led to a domestic league title.

I expect to sign, Zico told Brazilian newspaper O Globo. But there are still a few small things that need to be solved.

CSKA have been going through one of their best spells in history. Under Gazzaev, the Muscovites won three national champion…

Philippe Coutinho scored a brace as Brazil opened the Copa America with a 3-0 win over Bolivia in Sao Paulo.

After an underwhelming first half at Estadio do Morumbi, Coutinho scored twice within eight minutes of the restart to put Brazil in control on Friday.

A VAR check and handball led Coutinho to the penalty spot and the Barcelona star made no mistake in the 50th minute before making it 2-0 three minutes later after capping a sweeping move.

Everton came off the bench and scored the goal of the night with a blistering effort from outside the area in the 84th minute as the Selecao – who have won the Copa on each of the previous four occasions they have hosted in 1919, 1922, 1949 and 1989 – made a winning start in Group A.

GOOOOOOOOOL DO BRASIL! Mais…

Frank Lampard s lack of managerial experience should not concern Chelsea but they must make sure they get the right people on his staff, according to Ruud Gullit.

The Blues are searching for a new boss after confirming Maurizio Sarri s departure on Sunday, with the Italian leaving Stamford Bridge to take over at Serie A champions Juventus.

Chelsea great Lampard is the favourite to take over despite his coaching CV including just a solitary season in charge of Derby County, who missed out on promotion after losing in the Championship play-off final to Aston Villa.

Yet Chelsea have taken the plunge with inexperienced appointments in the past. Gullit came in as player-coach in 1996, while Gianluca Vialli filled the same role after the Dutchman departed in Febru…

Manchester City defender John Stones feels it was a blessing in disguise that he did not join Chelsea a year ago and instead plays for best manager in the world Pep Guardiola.

Chelsea, then managed by Jose Mourinho, made a strong push to sign the England international prior to the 2015-16 season, but did not produce a bid that tempted Everton to sell.

Instead, Stones remained at Goodison Park for that campaign before joining City this month for a reported fee that could eventually rise to £50million.

Stones, 22, has always been in a hurry to reach the top level and compete to win trophies, but feels his move to Chelsea not materialising should now be seen as a positive as it means he gets to work under Guardiola.

I suppose what happened turned out to…

Denis Suarez has revealed his deep admiration for Barcelona legend Andres Iniesta after the 22-year-old secured a return to Camp Nou.

Barca exercised an option to bring the attacking midfielder back to Catalunya after he was sold to Villarreal last August following a loan spell with Sevilla.

Having declared the move a dream come true when the signing was announced, Suarez spoke at his official presentation on Wednesday of his excitement at playing with Iniesta.

He is a role model for everyone in football and I m so happy to be able to learn things from playing alongside him, he said, before reflecting on his time with Villarreal and Sevilla.

I grew as a footballer during those experiences. At Sevilla my fitness and tactical awareness improved and I…

Gregory van der Wiel says Paris Saint-Germain s away form is not a concern ahead of the UEFA Champions League opener at Ajax on Wednesday.

The French champions have taken nine points from their opening five Ligue 1 fixtures, drawing all three of their away matches against Reims, Evian and Rennes.

However, Van der Wiel, who left Ajax for PSG in 2012 having played in Amsterdam since the age of eight, insists Laurent Blanc s men are confident in their abilities going into another European campaign.

Referring to Sunday s 1-1 draw in Rennes, the full-back told Le Parisien: It was not a good result and we are disappointed but not worried.

We know the quality of our team. Rennes defended well, but from our side, we should have been able to keep it at 1-0 and n…

Brendan Rodgers admits huge improvement is needed if Liverpool are to mount another tilt at the Premier League title.

Rodgers side were the top-flight s surprise package last season, rising from a seventh-placed finish in 2012-13 to run Manchester City agonisingly close in the battle for the title.

However, Liverpool shorn of last term s top scorer Luis Suarez, who moved to Barcelona in July have struggled at the beginning of this campaign, losing three of their first five Premier League games.

Their latest defeat came in a 3-1 reverse at West Ham on Saturday and Rodgers knows his team are performing well below the level required to compete at the very top of the division, suggesting that Liverpool s challenge last season came ahead of schedule.

However, …

Chelsea manager Rafael Benitez says he did not expect to take charge of the Stamford Bridge club so soon after Roberto Di Matteo s sacking.

The former Liverpool boss will take charge of the Blues against Manchester City on Sunday after replacing the Italian coach, with his last role coming in 2010 with Italian side Inter.

But, despite being out of a coaching job for two years, the 52-year-old has revealed he has been preparing for a return to management, and is hungry to succeed again.

You are not expecting to be here, and that Chelsea would have to change the manager in that time, he told the club s official website.

When they decided to do it I talked with my agent, and I knew we had a chance, but everything has happened very quickly.

Benite…