Joao Palhinha says he wants to write my own story at Bayern Munich, as the midfielder targets silverware with his new employers.
The Portugal midfielder joined Bayern from Fulham last month in a deal reportedly worth an initial €50million (£42m), signing a four-year contract at the Allianz Arena.
Palhinha came close to signing with the Bundesliga giants last September, only for the Cottagers to pull the plug on a deadline-day transfer when they failed to sign a replacement.
The 29-year-old made the move having impressed during his two-year stint in the Premier League, completing the most tackles during the 2023-24 season with 152 (5.07 per 90 minutes).
He also averaged 8.38 ball recoveries, 5.44 completed long balls, 2.23 interceptions and 2.09 blocks …
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Attempting to reverse a two-goal disadvantage, Sparta Prague is set to welcome Dinamo Zagreb to the Letna Stadium, also known as the epet ARENA, for the second leg of their Europa League playoff clash on Thursday night.
Dinamo, having achieved a 3-1 victory in the initial leg, will be focused on completing their mission and clinching a spot in the Europa League group stage as they journey to Czechia.
Sparta Prague
After missing out on European competition last season, Sparta Prague will at least be playing in the Europa Conference League this term. However, their prospects of advancing to the Europa League group stage are not looking good after the defeat in Zagreb.
Sparta seemed poised to go into halftime with the lead…
Australia s football chief Wednesday admitted the nation s push for the 2018 World Cup was in jeopardy, after FIFA president Sepp Blatter indicated preference would likely be given to a European bid.
Blatter said this week there was a movement at the moment among the various candidates for 2018 eligibility to be limited to bidders from Europe, according to widely published reports.
The Football Federation of Australia (FFA) said it had been aware for some time that a Europe-only deal was being considered by FIFA, the sport s governing body.
Hence FFA is not surprised by the president s comments as they are reflective that those discussions have occurred in some quarters, it said in a statement.
But FFA chairman Frank Lowy said Australia remained committ…
England manager Gareth Southgate’s Euro 2024 selection headaches could soon ease a little as UEFA considers whether to return to 26-man squads.
Teams have been back to preparing for 23-strong selections this summer after being allowed expanded groups to help cope with the knock-on impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
But a return to 26 is understood to have been backed by the majority of coaches at a Euro 2024 workshop on Monday, with UEFA saying it will make a final decision in the coming weeks.
Previous expanded selections allowed Southgate to take a calculated gamble on the fitness of Harry Maguire and Jordan Henderson at Euro 2020 as the pair recovered from injury.
The same went for Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips at the 2022 World Cup as they worked…
England men’s boss Gareth Southgate wished the Lionesses well ahead of tonight’s World Cup final but admitted he had “no advice” to offer a team that has accomplished what his has not.
Should they beat Spain tonight in Sydney, England’s women, managed by Sarina Wiegman, could be crowned world champions for the first time since the men’s team triumphed in 1966, just under 13 months since they secured the European championship title – something the men have never done.
Wiegman is the first coach to lead two nations to a women’s World Cup final, having also done so with the Netherlands four years ago, and would join just Sir Alf Ramsey on a list of managers who have won a global title with England.
Southgate, speaking in a video posted on the Lioness…
Four goals in the first 30 minutes helped Milan ease the pressure on Paulo Fonseca in a resounding 4-0 win over Venezia on Saturday.
Milan had a disappointing start to the Serie A season, with two draws and a loss, but they delivered an impressive performance to secure their first win of the campaign.
Theo Hernandez gave Milan the lead after just 88 seconds with a shot from a tight angle which deflected off Venezia keeper Jesse Joronen s legs and into the net.
The hosts doubled their lead 14 minutes later when a low corner found its way to Youssouf Fofana, who fired into the net.
Two quick penalties, first from Christian Pulisic in the 25th minute and then from Tammy Abraham four minutes later, put the match out of reach for the newly promoted visitors.
Former Three Lions boss Sven-Goran Eriksson has said that England have big possibilities to make the Euro 2012 semi-final or final.
I don t know if the Three Lions have big possibilities, but anything can happen in a tournament. After all, Greece won the European Championships in 2004 after beating hosts Portugual 2-1 in the final.
Why not win it? With a little bit of luck, not a lot of injuries and players not too tired, they have a chance,” the former England manager told BBC Radio 5 live’s Sportsweek show.
England have been drawn in Group D with France, Sweden, and the co-hosts Ukraine.
The Three Lions will face a renovated France side in their first game.
“They [France] have changed everything since the last World Cup…
Arsenal are keen on handing William Saliba a new contract amid interest from Real Madrid, according to . The report has claimed that Spanish and European giants Madrid are keen on signing Saliba, and that Arsenal are keen on keeping the defender at the Emirates Stadium.
TEAMtalk has reported that “reveal that there is absolutely no intention from Arsenal to sell Saliba in the coming windows as he is vital to their plans”, adding that the Gunners “are keen to tie him down to a new deal, with the centre-back’s current contract running until June 2027”.
Saliba has been on the books of Arsenal since 2019 and has now established him as one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League and is a key figure for the North London club. The 23-year-old France internatio…
Milan have completed the signing of Spain captain Alvaro Morata from Atletico Madrid.
The striker, who will wear the number seven shirt with the Rossoneri, has put pen to paper on a four-year deal at San Siro, with the option of an additional year.
Morata is fresh from leading Spain to their record-breaking fourth European Championship triumph at Euro 2024, following a 2-1 victory over England in the final.
The 31-year-old becomes Paulo Fonseca s first major signing since replacing Stefano Pioli in the Milan dugout.
This will be Morata s second spell in Italy, having scored 59 goals in 185 appearances across two separate stints with Juventus, where he won successive Serie A titles in 2015 and 2016.
He could make his debut when Milan host Torino in…
There will be capacity crowds for the Wimbledon finals next month and around 45,000 people are set to be allowed into Wembley for the Euro 2020 semi-finals and final.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday announced a four-week delay in lifting coronavirus lockdown restrictions in England to July 19 due to rising cases of the Delta variant.
However, Wimbledon and the European Championship are being treated as test events, so there is set to be a full house of 15,000 on Centre Court for the championship matches on the weekend of July 10-11.
The grass-court grand slam will be the first outdoor sporting event to have a capacity crowd since the start of the pandemic.
When the tournament, which was not staged last year due to the COVID-19 crisis, starts on …