Netherlands climb to second behind Spain

Despite manager Pep Guardiola s recent claims that Manchester City wouldn t be dipping into the transfer market this January to cover the holes in the central defence area, the Premier League champions are working hard on identifying defensive targets.

Guardiola said that the squad at his disposal boasted sufficient numbers and quality and that any players he would potentially want wouldn t be available for mid-season purchase. However, journalist Matt Law claims that the club are monitoring a few names between now and the start of next season, and January swoops if the right players turn out to be available haven t been ruled out.

City were keen on signing Bournemouth s Nathan Ake, but they are now resigned to Chelsea swooping in with their buy-back clause and taking …

Umtiti quick to become a valuable first-team member at Barcelona / Image via goal.com

And the French international defender has his fine performance against Manchester City to confirm the claim.

Undeniable Talent

Samuel Umtiti was a steady progress for French side Lyon taking the time to reach his blistering potential in 2015-16 season when he was named “the best player of the season” by Lyon fans, coming first in front of a more established first-team member Alexandre Lacazette.

It was a huge acclaim for a 22-year-old boy whose excellent performances did not go unnoticed.

The Catalans came knocking in the summer of 2016, signing the talented defender for a fee believed to be in the region of €25 million.

Having experienced plenty of defen…

Jack Grealish felt the same as a tearful Lionel Messi did when announcing his Barcelona exit as he made the switch from boyhood club Aston Villa to Manchester City.

Grealish joined City for a British-record £100million fee on Thursday, the Premier League champions meeting the England midfielder s release clause to take him to the Etihad Stadium.

Confirmation of Grealish s transfer came on the same day Barcelona announced they would be unable to sign Messi to a new contract due to financial and structural obstacles .

Messi, who is widely reported to be nearing a deal to join Paris Saint-Germain, then held an emotional media conference on Sunday as he confirmed the end of his 21-year stay at Camp Nou, with the Argentina superstar crying on stage before and after …

Bayern Munich failed to bounce back to winning ways in the Bundesliga as Union Berlin doggedly held them to a 1-1 draw at Alte Forsterei on Saturday.

The champions slipped up for the first time this top-flight season previously against Borussia Monchengladbach, and were looking to get back on track away from home.

But Julian Nagelsmann s side were forced to settle for a point that means both they and Urs Fischer s opponents stay locked behind Borussia Dortmund at the summit, in a match that struggled to live up to its explosive start.

Any notion of a quiet afternoon in the capital was swiftly dismissed in a blockbuster opening quarter of an hour, which saw the hosts fire home first before the visitors hit back barely three minutes later.

Sheraldo Beck…

PSV Eindoven midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum has revealed he does not intend to leave the Philips Stadion this summer, despite rumoured interest from Arsenal, understands.

Wijnaldum, who joined PSV from Dutch Eredivisie rivals Feyenoord Rotterdam for a reported fee of €5 million in the summer of 2011, has been handed the captain s armband by manager Phillip Cocu following the departure of Kevin Strootman to A.S. Roma.

The Holland international, 22, has emerged as a transfer target for Arsenal, but is more than happy to stay at PSV, having promised the club s technical director Marcel Brands he would not leave the North Brabant club at the end of the season.

At the end of last season I promised in a meeting with the coach and technical dir…

Milan have completed the signing of striker Alessandro Matri from Serie A rivals Juventus.

Matri, 29, joined Juventus from Cagliari in 2011 and helped Antonio Conte s men to win two of their last three Serie A titles.

However, Matri made just 19 starts for Juventus in all competitions last season, although he still managed to score 10 goals.

Juventus have brought in Carlos Tevez and Fernando Llorente in the transfer window to add to a forward line that already boasted the likes of Mirko Vucinic and Sebastian Giovinco.

Those deals shoved Matri further down the pecking order in Turin and he will now attempt to secure a place in the Milan starting XI after returning to the club where he started his professional career.

It s a great feeling to come back to whe…

Geoffrey Kondogbia remains committed to Inter despite comments from his agent hinting the Nerazzurri are merely a stepping stone in the France international s career.

Since his move from Monaco in June 2015, Kondogbia has failed to live up to a hefty €30million fee, and has struggled this season to break into the first team.

He made his first Serie A start since September in the Milan derby on Sunday, the 23-year-old playing the full 90 minutes as Inter rescued a point late on in a 2-2 draw.

His future at the club came under fresh scrutiny, though, as comments from his representative Jonathan Maarek hinted the player s future lies away from San Siro.

Speaking to France Football, he said: His arrival at Inter was another step towards getting to one of th…

Bayer Leverkusen sporting director Rudi Voller has confirmed that South Korea international forward Heung-Min Son had a medical at Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday.

Son, 23, is reportedly on the verge of completing a €30 million move to White Hart Lane after not participating in the Bundesliga club s UEFA Champions League playoff second-leg agaisnt Lazio. 

There is a request and there are talks. But nothing is done. Son would not have played today anyway, he was sick at the weekend already. At this moment he is our player, Voller told Germany TV channel Sky.

I saw many medicals in this business where there was no deal afterwards. We will try to reach an agreement, but only under our conditions.

Son, who joined Leverkusen from Hamburg…

Market: Reading to score over 0.5 goals

Odds: 8/11 @

Looking to spring an upset at Vicarage Road this weekend, Reading will make the trip to an inconsistent Watford on Saturday afternoon.

Starting with the hosts, while Watford might have opened the 2022/23 campaign tipped as a standout pick to book an immediate Premier League return, the Hornets have continued to struggle with their consistency. Last seen having to come from behind as they settled for a sluggish 1-1 draw away at Rotherham, new boss Rob Edwards does already find himself under some growing pressure. While the former Forest Green boss might have seen his side pick up a much-needed 2-1 victory against Middlesbrough on August 30th, it appears that was just a minor boost for fans around Vicarage Road.…

Prediction: Draw

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As millions around the world continue to deal with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, one slice of normality has remained the same sport. We re now in February and that means we re going to be experiencing a whole lost of games coming at us thick and fast between now and May, which is especially true in the English Premier League. Today, we re going to take a look at a fixture between two teams hoping to break into the top 10 Leeds United and Crystal Palace.

Leeds

Leeds United fans will forever be grateful to Marcelo Bielsa for guiding the club back into the Premier League, but they ll also be happy about the never say die style of football they continue to play. This is a team that isn t going to win every g…