Nesta lauds youthful Milan as Montella leads new chapter

Dusan Vlahovic matched Cristiano Ronaldo s momentous 33-goal year with Juventus as the Fiorentina striker scored again – leaving him a hat-trick short of an all-time Serie A record.

The 21-year-old Serbian scored for the sixth game in succession on Sunday, helping Fiorentina battle back from two goals down at half-time to draw 2-2 with Sassuolo.

Vlahovic will match a calendar year goals record set by Gunnar Nordahl in 1950 if he nets three times against Hellas Verona on Wednesday.

That is Fiorentina s last game of the year, as Serie A goes on its winter break, but Vlahovic has already equalled Ronaldo s 21st century record, which was established just last year.

Nordahl s epic 36-goal year for Milan marks the last time any player scored more than 33 in t…

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Everton and Arsenal will be hoping to get their search for European football back underway as they come together at the Emirates Stadium on Friday evening.

The two teams sit eighth and ninth respectively in the table ahead of the match and whilst a top four finish is likely to be beyond both of them, a victory in North London could potentially push them towards a UEFA Europa League place come the end of the campaign.

Arsenal

Inconsistency really has plagued the Gunners season thus far and that statement continues to be true after a rollercoaster few weeks for Mikel Arteta s men. Despite having racked up comprehensive victories against Slavia Praha and Sheffield United, those two matches were Arsena…

Benfica boss Roger Schmidt has no fears about losing World Cup stars Enzo Fernandez and Goncalo Ramos.

Head coach Schmidt said the youngsters, both 21, and veteran defender Nicolas Otamendi, are integral to his plans to deliver success in Lisbon.

Fernandez and Otamendi are part of the Argentina squad preparing for Sunday s World Cup final against France, when both could be starters.

That has put them in the spotlight, and midfielder Fernandez has been linked with a host of teams, including Liverpool.

Benfica sold striker Darwin Nunez to the Reds in the last transfer window, and Schmidt is determined to retain the best of the talent that has remained at the club.

We are very happy for them and they are happy to play at Benfica. We need players lik…

Casey Stoney will step down as head coach of Manchester United Women at the end of the domestic season.

The former England international took charge in June 2018 shortly after finishing her distinguished playing career at Liverpool.

Stoney led United to the Women s Championship title, and promotion to the Women s Super League, in the team s inaugural season in 2018-19. They won 18 of their 20 matches and suffered just one defeat.

United finished a creditable fourth in their first season in the top flight in 2019-20 and again this term, 10 points behind champions Chelsea. They face Leicester City in the fifth round of the Women s FA Cup on Sunday.

It has been an honour to lead the women s team at this great club and this has been an incredibly tough deci…

Jesse Lingard remained at Manchester United beyond the January transfer window, but the England international s long-term future at Old Trafford is far from certain.

After struggling for appearances this term under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and then Ralf Rangnick, Lingard s time at United may be reaching its natural conclusion.

A number of teams have been tipped to move for the 29-year-old at the end of the campaign, at which point he will officially become a free agent.

TOP STORY LINGARD ON JUVE S RADAR

Juventus have been unable to agree fresh terms with Paulo Dybala and, according to Calciomercato, plans are already in place to bring in a replacement in the next window.

The report claims that Juve are big fans of Lingard, despite his limited playing tim…

Didier Deschamps has said he cannot promise Antoine Griezmann a place in the France team even though his statistics for Les Bleus look great on paper.

Griezmann has struggled to find his best form since joining Barcelona from Atletico Madrid in July 2019, both with club and country.

He was player of the tournament and top scorer at Euro 2016, and then a World Cup winner with France two years later, but at the age of 29 appears to have lost some of his spark.

Deschamps believes that can return, and on the eve of a Nations League clash with Croatia he said there is no doubting Griezmann s class, even if his most recent form has left much to be desired.

Griezmann was unimpressive in the goalless draw with Portugal on Sunday in Paris, albeit one of a host of…

Paris Saint-Germain defender Alex admits his future at the club is uncertain, but has vowed to do all he can to earn a new deal.

The Brazilian s contract is due to expire in 2015, but the 31-year-old has made no secret of his desire to extend that stay.

But, with PSG still in the hunt for silverware in Ligue 1, the Coupe de la Ligue and the UEFA Champions League, Alex is prepared to wait until the close-season to re-enter negotiations.

I await the end of the season to seriously discuss with management, he is quoted as saying by L Equipe. I am working hard so that the club take the best decision.

The former Chelsea man has struggled to make any significant impression on the Brazil national team during his career, but has not given up on making the squad for the 2…

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In what could prove to be a cagey affair on Saturday night, Guarani will welcome Operario to the Estadio Brinco de Ouro.

Starting with the hosts, while some in Guarani’s camp might have opened up the 2024 campaign with their sights set on mounting a genuine promotion charge, the Bugre have continued to show a string of extended issues. Last seen earlier in the week putting in another worrying performance as they slumped to a routine 3-0 drumming away at Mirassol, Umberto Louzer’s men sit rock-bottom of the table and are desperately seeking some kind of boost. Although the Greens might have secured a much-welcomed 2-0 victory against Botofago SP on May 11th, that is the only Serie B win that Guarani have claimed fro…

Ronald Koeman has called on former club Barcelona to show Xavi more support than he received in the Camp Nou dugout and defended his own record with the Blaugrana.

Koeman spent just over a year in the Camp Nou dugout before being sacked in October 2021, winning the Copa del Ray last season but overseeing a third-place finish in LaLiga and the departure of legendary attacker Lionel Messi.

Barca sat ninth in the top flight when the Dutchman departed, but are now favourites to secure Champions League qualification after Xavi oversaw an upturn in results. 

However, the Catalan giants recently lost three successive home games for just the second time in their illustrious history, and Koeman says club president Joan Laporta must show Xavi more support than he was gran…

Former FA Cup winners Coventry City were dumped out of the competition after losing 2-1 to Conference North side Worcester City on Sunday.

League One Coventry sit 64 places above Worcester in the English football pyramid, but they were undone by their non-league opposition, who made the most of having a numerical advantage for 51 minutes.

Coventry goalkeeper Lee Burge was dismissed six minutes before the break following an altercation with Daniel Nti and Sean Geddes converted the resulting spot-kick to give the visitors the lead.

The hosts were given a lifeline when James Maddison won a debatable penalty, but Reda Johnson saw his effort saved by Nathan Vaughan and Worcester capitalised just after the break.

Geddes found the net for a second time with a fi…