EPL: Conte confirms David Luiz for Liverpool

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte has confirmed David Luiz will make his second debut for the club against Liverpool in the Premier League on Friday.

Luiz, who returned to the west London club from Paris Saint-Germain in a surprise £32 million ($42.7 million, 38 million euros) move on transfer deadline day, will replace injured Blues captain John Terry at Stamford Bridge.
The Brazilian defender’s first spell at Chelsea became known for his habit of making high-profile mistakes.
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville memorably said Luiz looked like he was “being controlled by a 10-year-old in the crowd on a Playstation” after one especially error-strewn display and the 29-year-old was unable to shed that reputation during his time in France.

Man dies minutes after Man-U players grant final wish

A 73-year-old man died 45 minutes after his dying wish of meeting Manchester United players came true.

Paddy Lawler, a lifelong supporter of the Red Devils and a prostate cancer patient, had told his family he would love to meet with the United squad before his death.

Despite the request seeming like a long shot, Lawler’s granddaughter, Kayleigh, posted an appeal on Facebook for anyone to help get in touch with the club in order for his wish to be granted.

The post was seen by the cousin on United’s player, Jesse Lingard. The winger, alongside Marcus Rashford, Ashley Young and Timothy Fosu-Mensah, visited Lawler three days later and 45 minutes after the visit, he passed on.

Mourinho omits Rooney from Europa League Dutch trip

 

Manchester United captain Wayne Rooney will be rested along with several other stars for the club’s Europa League group match with Dutch side Feyenoord in Rotterdam on Thursday.

The 30-year-old England skipper has been omitted by Jose Mourinho from the squad along with fellow first team regulars, defensive duo Luke Shaw and Ecuadorean Antonio Valencia.

One Red Devils star just about made it onto the flight home from Rotterdam after struggling to provide a urine sample following his side's Europa League defeat against Feyenoord

 

 Manchester United fans would have been in a rush to get out of De Kuip after Thursday's 1-0 Europa League defeat to Feyenoord, but one player was almost trapped in Rotterdam, but for the help of police.

The Nigeria international has told Goal about how his in-form Chelsea team-mate is looking to silence his doubters following a disappointing campaign last season

 


John Obi Mikel believes Chelsea team-mate Diego Costa's scintillating early-season form can be put down to a desire to prove his critics wrong following a disappointing 2015-16 campaign.
Costa is the current joint-top goalscorer in the Premier League ahead of the Blues' match with Liverpool on Friday after scoring four goals in as many league matches under Antonio Conte.
The Spain international is already just eight goals behind his league tally in what proved to be a difficult campaign for the striker last season.
And Mikel reckons Costa is out to silence any doubters he picked up during his struggles by proving his class under Conte this term.
“I definitely think he can get even better," Mikel told Goal. “He can score more goals, he can help the team even more, but Diego is a player that likes to find and doesn’t give up.
“He knows that everyone had a bad season last year so I think this season he is trying to prove people wrong and he has started well and hopefully he will have a very good season.”

The Umuahia-based side have been slammed with a stadium ban for the behaviour of their fans, and the gaffer says the fans' absence will be a big miss

 

The Umuahia-based side have been slammed with a stadium ban for the behaviour of their fans, and the gaffer says the fans' absence will be a big miss

Abia Warriors coach  Abdullahi Biffo has remained focused despite the sanctions handed out to the club by the League Management Company (LMC).
Warriors have been handed a total fine of N2.5m for the unruly conduct of their fans in an NPFL Match Day 34 fixture against FC Ifeanyi Ubah, with the club now set to play two home matches

The Portuguese is back to face his former club in the tournament he loves the most — but Real relies on him far less these days.

Ronaldo returns in his favorite competition - but Madrid can now function without him

The Portuguese is back to face his former club in the tournament he loves the most — but Real relies on him far less these days.

It is a game he will not have wanted to miss. Cristiano Ronaldo returns against his old club Sporting CP and in his favorite competition: the Champions League. But as he starts his eighth season at Real Madrid, the team is set up to function without him these days. Coach Zinedine Zidane is a big admirer. The Frenchman worked hard to get Ronaldo back on board after replacing Rafa Benitez in January. And it paid dividends: As the team improved, so too did Cristiano — and there was a happy ending in May as Madrid claimed the Champions League.
The Portuguese played his part. He scored 16 goals throughout the competition and his hat trick against Wolfsburg turned over a 2-0 deficit from the first leg in the quarterfinals. Not for the first time in recent years, he had got his team out of jail.
But as Zidane builds for the future, he is keen for Madrid to function with or without Ronaldo. While the 31-year-old is there and still scoring, everyone is content at the Santiago Bernabeu. But there is no longer a feeling that the club depends upon him as it once did.
In the semifinals of the Champions League last season, it was Gareth Bale who forced the winner versus Manchester City — an own goal by Fernando — and