Chelsea star ‘not good enough’ for Aston Villa ‘getting closer’ to Atletico Madrid transfer

Lucas Vazquez has vowed that Real Madrid will “keep fighting right until the end” in the LaLiga title race but he admits that city rivals Atletico Madrid have the edge.

Vazquez netted the opener in Real’s 2-0 victory against Celta Vigo on Saturday as Zinedine Zidane’s side took over top spot for the first time since October.

A run of three losses in six games saw their lead slip in November but Real have now moved ahead of Atleti by a single point, although Diego Simeone’s side have three games in hand.

Real are defending champions and the competition s most successful club but, although his side are on top, Spain attacker Vazquez admits he does not believe Zidane’s team has the advantage.

The league has been very competitive. There are no e…

Zinedine Zidane rocked world football on Thursday with the announcement of his resignation as Real Madrid coach, a decision which is likely to have a knock-on effect for several high-profile players.

The Frenchman guided Madrid to a third successive Champions League title just five days earlier, meaning he goes out in style and on his own terms.

But his departure suddenly leaves Los Blancos facing a period of uncertainty and that could impact a number of players, both at the Santiago Bernabeu and elsewhere.

Two of Madrid s major stars, Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale, cast doubt on their respective futures at the weekend and all eyes will now be on them to see how Zidane s decision influences their thoughts.

There are also potential targets who might b…

Diego Simeone has suggested Atletico Madrid are limiting Antoine Griezmann s minutes in order to avoid activating a purchase clause in the forward s loan deal. 

Griezmann is midway through a two-year loan spell from Barcelona, but Atleti must reportedly make the France international s stay permanent should he play over 45 minutes in the majority of their games. 

While Griezmann made 21 league starts for Los Colchoneros last season, scoring three goals and adding four assists, he has been reduced to a bit-part role at the outset of the new campaign.

The 31-year-old has impressed during his three substitute appearances this season, scoring twice, but has only played 82 minutes in LaLiga.

Asked whether his management of Griezmann s playing time was dicta…

Market: Strasbourg win

Odds: 8/11 @

In what is a real relegation six-pointer on Sunday afternoon, Strasbourg will welcome AC Ajaccio to the Stade de la Meinau.

Starting with the hosts, while Strasbourg might have claimed a stunning top-six finish last season, Le Racing have certainly come crashing back down to earth this time around. Last seen putting in another downbeat display as they slumped to a 2-1 loss away at Lens, Frederic Antonetti s men have claimed just a single win from any of their last six Ligue 1 appearances. Currently sat two points adrift in the drop zone and facing what could be a season-defining battle here, there is no doubt that Strasbourg will be glad to make a return to home soil this weekend. Last seen at the Stade de la Meinau picking up…

Inter Milan are on the verge of agreeing a deal for Bologna midfielder Saphir Taider, .

The Nerazzurri have been hot on the trail of the Algerian midfielder for a while now, and they seem to have finally reached an agreement with the player s employers.

Inter have reportedly had a €6 million offer accepted by Felsinei, with the deal set to be wrapped up later today.

The Nerazzurri have been on the lookout for a new central midfielder, and they decided to turn to Taider after missing out on several high-profile footballers.

The 21-year-old has shown a great deal of potential since joining Bologna from Grenoble in the summer of 2011, and he seems to have done enough to earn a lucrative move to Stadio Giuseppe Meazza.

Taider established himself as…

Arsenal will face Borussia Dortmund, Napoli and Marseille in the UEFA Champions League group stages following Thursday s draw.

The Premier League side who have reached the group stages of the competition for the last 16 seasons were placed in a difficult Group F at the draw in Monaco.

Arsene Wenger s men will face a tough challenge to get out of the group, with Dortmund last season s beaten finalists and Napoli sure to present a serious test.

While that looks the toughest group, all four teams in Group H have lifted the trophy previously, with Barcelona joined by seven-time winners Milan, Ajax and Celtic.

Barcelona and Ajax have both won the competition on four occasions, while Celtic were crowned European champions in 1967.

Amazingly, Barca and Ajax have p…

Zinedine Zidane feels Cristiano Ronaldo s hat-trick in the derby victory over Atletico Madrid has decided the 2016 Ballon d Or.

Ronaldo scored all three goals, one in the first half and two in the second, including a penalty, as Real Madrid claimed the bragging rights in the final LaLiga derby at the Vicente Calderon before Diego Simeone s team leave their historic home at the end of the season.

Ronaldo is vying with 2015 winner Lionel Messi and the likes of Atletico s Antoine Griezmann for the biggest individual prize in world football.

And Madrid coach Zidane, who claimed the accolade himself in 1998, believes the Portugal star will be awarded his fourth Ballon d Or on January 11.

I ve never had doubts that Cristiano is the best and tonight closes the…

that Nemanja Matic was close to signing for Juventus during the summer transfer window.

Matic was strongly linked with a move away from Stamford Bridge after a disappointing campaign, where he was a number of Blues’ players that under-performed as the side failed to qualify for Europe.

Juve had a £30m offer ready for the Serbia international as they looked to spend some of the money brought in from the record transfer of Paul Pogba to Manchester United though a move never materialized.

Matic is currently in his second spell wit h Chelsea having re-signed from Benfica in January 2014 and has in total made one hundred and fifteen appearances for the club scoring five goals.

Having flattered to deceive last season, the 2015 Premier League champions…

Christophe Galtier insists Paris Saint-Germain can t afford to only play one half following their narrow 2-1 victory over bottom side Angers in Ligue 1.

Kylian Mbappe scored twice at Stade Raymond-Kopa as runaway leaders PSG moved 11 points clear at the summit, while pushing their opponents to the brink of relegation.

However, it was a generally below-par display by the visitors, who failed to press home their advantage after the restart and were denied a clean sheet when Sada Thioub struck three minutes from time.

In fact, Angers registered six more shots than PSG (10) during the 90 minutes and while Galtier was pleased to see his side edge closer to another league title, the head coach conceded he expects more from his players.

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Premier League clubs have reluctantly and unanimously agreed not to release players for international matches due to be played in countries on the United Kingdom s red list next month.

International managers have been naming their squads for the upcoming September fixtures this week, though with the coronavirus pandemic still causing global upheaval, the Premier League clubs have intervened.

On Monday, Liverpool blocked star forward Mohamed Salah from travelling to join up with Egypt s squad for their home game, though would reportedly have allowed their talisman to travel to Gabon, which is on the UK s amber list.

Countries on the red list for travel to and from the UK require arrivals to quarantine in a hotel for 10 days upon their return, regardless of vaccin…