Willian marked his 300th appearance for Chelsea with the winner as Frank Lampard s side dug deep to beat Lille 2-1 and get off the mark in the Champions League.
The Brazilian had a mostly quiet game but produced a rare moment of quality in the second half, cracking a powerful volley beyond Mike Maignan in the 77th minute to secure three points.
Tammy Abraham had earlier marked his 22nd birthday with his first Champions League goal, but Victor Osimhen headed Lille level by half-time.
The first half had been vibrant, but the level of both sides dipped in the second 45 minutes. Chelsea were happy to take the spoils by any means, however, having lost their opening Group H match to Valencia at Stamford Bridge.
Lille, meanwhile, have suffered back-to-back def…
Market: Over 1.5 goals
Odds: 2/5 @
Desperate to claim a Championship boost in midweek, West Brom will travel to the New York Stadium when they meet Rotherham on Tuesday night.
Starting with the hosts, while Rotherham might have eventually clung to their Championship status last season, it appears that the Millers are facing another major uphill struggle this time around. Last seen over the weekend getting hit with a 2-1 loss at the hands of Swansea, interim boss Wayne Carlisle finds his downbeat squad sat rock-bottom of the table and rightfully tipped as a leading relegation contender. Mustering just 13 points from their first 20 Championship appearances this season, the Yorkshire-based outfit are also without a win from any of their previous eight straight outi…
Zinedine Zidane said he would have liked his relationship with Real Madrid and president Florentino Perez to have been a little different following his Los Blancos exit.
Zidane led Madrid to the 2019-20 LaLiga title in his second spell in charge, but the Frenchman elected to move on after the club s runners-up finish behind city rivals Atletico Madrid in 2020-21.
In his first spell, from January 2016 to May 2018, Zidane delivered three successive Champions League triumphs and one LaLiga title.
Drawn back to the club in March 2019, his second tenure did not prove quite as successful, although he led Madrid to LaLiga success in the 2019-20 season.
Zidane departed after a barren campaign on the trophy front, however, with Madrid losing early to minnows Alco…
The Champions League has reached the quarter-final stage, with all four ties to be played over one leg in Lisbon over the next four days.
Last-eight regulars Barcelona and Bayern Munich meet in arguably the pick of the fixtures, while much-fancied Manchester City take on Juventus conquerors Lyon.
Elsewhere, quarter-final debutants Atalanta and RB Leipzig will be looking to pull off upsets against Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid respectively.
Ahead of the mouthwatering ties, we take a look at the key Opta statistics.
Two hurdles from the final. Who makes it?
YOU decide! Sim your own Final 8 now |
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague)
ATALANTA V PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN
0 PSG have never won a game against Italian opp…
Nottingham Forest have completed the signing of Atletico Madrid left-back Renan Lodi on a season-long loan.
Forest will reportedly pay Atleti an initial £4.2million (€5m) loan fee for Lodi, who has also renewed his deal with the LaLiga club until 2026.
Lodi becomes promoted Forest s 18th signing of a busy transfer window.
The Brazil international joined Atleti from Athletico Paranaense in June 2019 and has made 84 appearances in the Spanish top flight, scoring four goals and adding six assists.
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Barcelona head coach Xavi believes everyone is prepared as he highlighted the importance of squad players after the 3-0 victory over 10-man Elche at Camp Nou.
Memphis Depay s strike and Robert Lewandowski s double saw Barca cruise to a fifth win in their opening six La Liga games, while adding a fourth consecutive league clean sheet.
The three points moved them top of the table ahead of Sunday s Madrid derby, and Xavi believes squad depth will be vital as Barcelona bid to land their first LaLiga title since the 2018-19 campaign.
We are a broad squad, in which everyone trains well. Everyone is prepared and plugged in when the team needs it, and that s what s important, Xavi said.
It s an atypical year with a tight schedule. We won t rest for a few w…
Nathaniel Clyne has joined Crystal Palace on a short-term contract, returning for a second spell at Selhurst Park after eight years away.
Clyne was released by Liverpool, who he joined from Southampton in 2015, earlier this year.
The 29-year-old is reunited with Roy Hodgson, under whom he won 13 of his 14 England caps.
I m a London boy, this is where I grew up. I m back home and all my family and friends are here, Clyne told the club s website.
It s surreal being back, enjoying it and hopefully I can just crack on and enjoy my football again.
Palace have six points from their opening four Premier League matches, with victories over Southampton and Manchester United followed by back-to-back losses against Everton and Chelsea.
C…
Portugal have booked their place in the Round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar with a 2-0 win against Uruguay at the Lusail Iconic Stadium in Lusail on Monday evening.
The win means that the 2016 European Championship winners are at the top of Group H at the moment with six points from two matches.
Portugal are three points ahead of second-placed Ghana, while South Korea and Uruguay are on one point each and are third and fourth respectively in the standings.
Fernando Santos’s side have ascertained their place in the knockout rounds at the 2022 Qatar World Cup and will win the group with maximum points against South Korea.
Even a defeat will suffice as long as Ghana do not win by a big margin against Uruguay.
Portugal got the better …
Erik ten Hag knows Manchester United “have a way to go” as they look to kickstart their season with a statement derby victory against rivals Manchester City.
All eyes will be on Old Trafford this Sunday as Pep Guardiola’s treble winners look to halt the Red Devils’ wholly unconvincing three-game winning streak.
United required their latest ever Premier League comeback to beat Brentford 2-1 before an international break they returned from with a win by the same scoreline at rock-bottom Sheffield United.
Ten Hag’s team toiled to a third straight victory in all competitions on Tuesday, when Andre Onana’s last-gasp spot-kick save sealed a crucial 1-0 win against Copenhagen in the Champions League.
It was another narrow escape for a United side tha…
James Maddison not going to the World Cup with England would be a shame for the country , said Brendan Rodgers after the Leicester City midfielder scored another two goals on Monday.
Maddison s continued absence from Gareth Southgate s Three Lions squad has been the source of some contention.
The 25-year-old has earned only a single England cap, in November 2019, and appears to face an uphill battle to gain favour with Southgate before Qatar 2022 kicks off next month.
Yet Maddison has started the Premier League season in outstanding form. After scoring two and assisting another in Leicester s 4-0 win over fellow strugglers Nottingham Forest, he has seven goal involvements in seven appearances.
Going back to the start of the previous campaign, Southgate s …