Basel, Luzern among semi finalists in Swiss Cup

Mikel Arteta expects Gabriel Jesus to offer a lot to Arsenal as the new-look Gunners hope to hit the ground running with an early statement of intent in the new Premier League season.

Arsenal had been in dire need of attacking reinforcements after allowing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leave mid-way through last season and then letting Alexandre Lacazette s contract expire.

Brazil international Jesus was quickly identified as a primary target and Arsenal sealed his £45million signing in early July, allowing him to link up with Arteta once again having worked together at Manchester City.

Some expressed doubts over Jesus being the right sort of player to fill the void given he had rarely been seen as dependable enough at City to be their first-choice striker – he sp…

Real keen on Aymeric Laporte

Champions League holders Real Madrid have informed Athletic Bilbao of their interest in French defender Aymeric Laporte, .

The two clubs have been in talks over Asier Illarramendi and los Blancos officials took advantage of the opportunity to enquire about the possibility of recruiting Laporte in the summer.

However, as expected, Athletic referred them to the player s €42 million release clause, as they have no plans to negotiate with interested clubs.

Real Madrid apparently see Laporte as a perfect option to form a defensive pairing with Raphael Varane in the future and they could decide to meet the asking price at the end of the season.

With the youngster also on the radar of Manchester United, Arsenal and Bayern …

Wilfried Zaha has declared his happiness at returning to Crystal Palace permanently after a frustrating spell at Manchester United.

Crystal Palace appear to have finalised the permanent re-signing of winger Wilfied Zaha from Manchester United, much to the player s delight.

The 22-year-old twice-capped England international is thought to have agreed a five-and-a-half year contract with the London club.

Zaha moved from Selhurst Park to Old Trafford in 2013 but his career with the then Premier League champions failed to ignite as he made just four appearances in all competitions before joining Cardiff City on loan last January.

An initial return to Palace on loan in August and, following 19 outings and one goal this term, manager Alan Pardew has moved to ma…

World football s ruling body FIFA on Thursday fined the Croatian Football Federation 30,000 Swiss francs after Croat fans racially abused England striker Emile Heskey during a World Cup qualifier.

FIFA warned that further infringements would lead to more severe sanctions .

En route to an eventual 4-1 victory for England earlier this month, Heskey was taunted with monkey chants from a section of the Maksimir Stadium in Zagreb when he was booked for fouling Niko Kovac.

England s Football Association then took the case to FIFA.

It is not the first time Croatia s fans have been sanctioned for racist abuse.

Croatia had to pay a small fine during Euro 2008 for racist abuse from their fans during their game against Turkey.

…

Russia coach Guus Hiddink insisted his team will keep learning from their 2-1 defeat to Germany as they prepare for their next World Cup qualifier against Finland on Wednesday.

Goals by Chelsea midfielder Michael Ballack and Bayern Munich striker Lukas Podolski put Germany 2-0 ahead at half-time here Saturday before Russian play-maker Andrei Arshavin scored a second-half goal for the guests.

The win puts Germany top of Group Four on seven points, while Russia are fourth in the table ahead of their showdown with Finland in Moscow.

Hiddink praised his side for their response having come close to forcing an equaliser and almost taking a valuable point from Germany.

In the break, I told them they had dropped back into their old ways and were sitting back…

Marcus Rashford labelled Ole Gunnar Solskjaer comparing him to Cristiano Ronaldo as nice , but the Manchester United forward said he still had a way to go to reach those heights.

Rashford was compared to Ronaldo by his manager after starring in United s 2-1 Premier League win over Manchester City last week.

But while happy with such talk, the 22-year-old said he needed to improve to match the five-time Ballon d Or winner and United great.

The Ronaldo thing was nice, definitely a compliment, Rashford told BBC Sport.

But I understand how far I ve got left to go to reach the heights he reached so I am very clear-minded and focused on myself.

Morning, Reds

— Manchester United (@ManUtd)

Rashford came through the academy at Unite…

He was not angry, but he was more than just disappointed. 

Romelu Lukaku had just helped Manchester United beat old club Chelsea, ending his wait for a goal against major opposition in the process, when he was asked if he felt criticism of his big-game mettle was unfair.

I ve been in the game for so long, said the striker, having scored his first goal for the club against a top-eight team in 13 attempts. I started playing when I was 16. Year in, year out, people expect 20 goals from me. I ve been doing it for 10 years straight so I think I ve proved myself.

You expect a bit more respect but it s the situation we re in. I don t listen to it [the criticism]. I just want to improve and show the people what I can do on the pitch.

Looking just at Lukaku s …

Paris Saint-Germain have turned down an approach for manager Carlo Ancelotti from Real Madrid, according to the club s president.

The Spanish giants are on the lookout for a new coach with Jose Mourinho s impending departure likely to see him end up at former club Chelsea.
A host of names have been linked with the position at Real Madrid, including Rafael Benitez and Juergen Klopp, but PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi confirmed that they had asked for permission to speak to Ancelotti.
Al-Khelaifi said that Real Madrid general manager Jose Angel Sanchez had thought Ancelotti was out of contract at season s end, while he also stated his desire for the Italian to remain in the French capital.
If Carlo Ancelotti left Paris, it would be a problem, he told L Equipe.
A few days ago,…

Alan Hutton was the unlikely match-winner as Aston Villa earned a 1-0 win at neighbours Walsall on Tuesday.

The Scotland full-back has not made a first-team appearance for Villa since Paul Lambert was appointed as manager in June 2012.

However, following loan spells at Nottingham Forest, Mallorca and Bolton Wanderers, Hutton has been given a chance to impress ahead of the 2014-15 campaign and did his cause no harm with the only goal at the Bescot Stadium his first in a Villa shirt.

A victory for Lambert s men, albeit against modest opponents who fielded an experimental side and made wholesale changes at the interval with their League One opener at Port Vale just four days away, provides a welcome confidence boost.

Villa had been beaten in each of their pr…

Market: Genoa win

Odds: 2/3 @

Looking to extend on their rampant run of form this weekend, Genoa will welcome Reggina to the Stadio Luigi Ferraris on Friday night.

Starting with the hosts, although Genoa might have lost their Serie A status last season, it appears that the Griffins are breezing their way towards an immediate top-flight return in 2023. Only continuing on a stellar purple patch since opening the New Year, Alberto Gilardino’s men open this weekend’s fixtures holding a five-point buffer from slipping out of the automatic promotion places. Last seen putting in another rampant display as they claimed a 3-0 victory away at Brescia before heading into the international break, Genoa have now won each of their last three Serie B showdowns by an aggreg…