I will sleep better – Pep Guardiola calls Jurgen Klopp ‘best rival of my career’

Zinedine Zidane wore a huge smile as Real Madrid won 2-0 thanks to Marco Asensio and Karim Benzema in the second leg of the Spanish Supercopa, clinching the 5-1 aggregate humiliation of Barcelona and seemingly confirming their status as the undisputed kings of Spanish football.

That was August. Few would have predicted the respective circumstances of Zidane and his counterpart Ernesto Valverde ahead of their next Clasico meeting four months on.

Barca had just lost twice in four days to their bitter rivals, watched helplessly as one of the jewels in their crown Neymar left for Paris Saint-Germain, became mired in off-field legal battles, struggled to sign their key transfer targets and saw speculation about Lionel Messi s future arise.

By contrast, the Supercopa v…

Market: Plzen win

Odds: 1/1 @

Looking to punch their Europa League group stage ticket on Thursday night, Plzen will travel to Tynecastle when they meet Hearts.

Starting with the hosts, suffering last-gasp heartbreak over in the Czech Republic last week as they suffered a 1-0 first-leg defeat, Hearts appear to have a real challenge on their hands here. While the Jambos might have gained a string of plaudits last season as they secured a bronze medal finish among Scotland’s elite, Steven Naismith’s men find themselves at the heart of a real crisis this time around. Showing a string of glaring issues since opening up the 2024/25 campaign, the Edinburgh-based outfit have the feel of a squad seeking a crucial boost. Last seen over the weekend putting in another w…

Rob Page insists Wales can reach Euro 2024 by drawing on their successful World Cup play-off history.

Wales were consigned to the Euro play-offs in March after a controversial 1-1 draw with Turkey in Cardiff.

Neco Williams’ early strike was cancelled out by Yusuf Yazici’s second-half penalty – with Page suggesting Wales would have won with another referee – as the Dragons fell short in their bid to overtake Croatia for the second automatic qualifying place behind group winners Turkey.

Croatia secured automatic qualification with a 1-0 home victory over Armenia, leaving Wales in the play-offs with a home semi-final against either Finland, Iceland or Ukraine. Poland and Estonia will contest the other semi-final.

The identity of Wales’ opponents wi…

Diego Maradona promised to fight to save Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata s season during an emotional presentation to supporters after he was unveiled as head coach.

Maradona fought back the tears as he addressed the crowd at Juan Carmelo Zerillo Stadium, where the Argentina legend has been given his first job in his homeland since leaving the national team in 2010.

The 58-year-old made a bizarre claim that ex-FIFA president Sepp Blatter and former president of the Argentine Football Association (AFA) Julio Grondona prevented him from coaching in Argentina, while promising he would work hard to turn Gimnasia s fortunes around.

Gimnasia are bottom of the Superliga and Maradona, who will be in charge until the end of the season, told the supporters who greeted him: I …

Orlando City have the signing of Luis Nani.

The MLS side have officially stated that they have reached an agreement with Sporting Lisbon over the signing of the Portuguese winger on a free transfer. He has signed a three-year contract and will join the club as a Designated player.

City SC EVP of Soccer Operations Luiz Muzzi said Nani was a dynamic player on who can deliver crosses and impact games from the offensive flanks and who will bring a significant amount of experience to the team.

Nani s career started at Sporting in 2005, and two years later he moved to Manchester United. There, he won four Premier League titles and the 2008 Champions League. In 2014, he was loaned back to Sporting for a season, before joining Turkish side Fenerbahce on a three-year de…

Erik ten Hag insists Manchester United will push for trophies this season despite a humiliating 3-0 defeat to rivals Liverpool at Old Trafford on Sunday.

Ten Hag, who won the EFL Cup and FA Cup in his first two terms with the club, watched on as Luis Diaz s double and Mohamed Salah s second-half strike secured an impressive victory for the visitors.

While the statistics suggest it was a closely contested affair, Liverpool punished a series of errors from United at a disgruntled Old Trafford, with Casemiro and Kobbie Mainoo both culpable for senseless turnovers.

Of the Red Devils eight shots, meanwhile, only three threatened Alisson s goal, as they ended the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 1.36 to Liverpool s 1.73.

But despite an underwhelmi…

Personally, no matter what happens I will be here next season, Guardiola said to Sky Sports. If the club don t sack me that can happen I will stay here 100 per cent, more than ever. 

Firstly, because I want to stay more than the contract [I have] now. It s something special, I want to stay, I want to help the club, if it is possible, to maintain this level as much as possible. 

Why should I leave when I said a month ago that I love this club and I like to be here. We spoke with the players and for the next three months here we are going to focus on what we have to do and then we will have to see the sentence.  

Those are the words of Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola who has said that, despite the club s impending two season ban from Europe, he does no…

If Manchester United s 2-2 draw with Aston Villa on Sunday highlighted one of their biggest concerns, the contest also put a spotlight on a potential fix in the form of the visitors star man.

So plentiful are their issues that one could argue the starting XI against Villa requires as many as six upgrades to bring them even close to Liverpool s standard.

But one area in which they are woefully short is midfield. Paul Pogba aside, not one of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer s current options would get near the line-up of Jurgen Klopp s Reds or Manchester City and, given his form this year, it would be difficult even to make a case for the Frenchman.

The emergence of an apparent interest in Leicester City s James Maddison makes sense and appears to indicate a desire to final…

Market: Monaco win

Odds: 8/11 @

Hoping to extend on their domestic romp this weekend, Monaco will welcome Reims to the Stade Louis-II on Saturday afternoon.

Starting with the hosts, extending on their Coupe de France adventure last weekend as they edged past Lens, the mood in Monaco’s camp should be at a red-hot high. Although Adi Hutter’s side might have eventually fallen short in their bid to punch a European return, the Monegasques appear to be sat in pole position to clinch a Champions League ticket. Signing off 2023 with another eye-catching display as they secured a 2-1 victory away at Toulouse, the former Eintracht Frankfurt boss will be calling on his squad to make another statement here. Now winning four of their previous five domestic appearances a…

France got the better of South Africa in a seven-goal thriller as Andre-Pierre Gignac s hat-trick inspired Les Bleus to a 4-3 victory at the Tokyo Olympics.

Having been thrashed 4-1 by Mexico in their opening game of Group A, France hit back to keep their chances of progression alive, though they had to do so the hard way in Saitama.

Indeed, South Africa led on three occasions during a remarkable second half, yet it was Les Bleus who took the points.

Liberato Cacace s stunner was not enough to propel New Zealand to victory against Honduras in Group B, while reigning champions Brazil could only draw 0-0 with the Ivory Coast and Spain overcame Australia thanks to Mikel Oyarzabal s late winner.

GIGNAC AND SAVANIER SETTLE THRILLER

France we…