Football News

Real Zaragoza vs Real Madrid: Copa del Rey Real Madrid confirmed their place in the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey on Wednesday night after beating Real Zaragoza 4-0 at the Estadio La Romareda, yet afterwards Zinedine Zidane was keen to single out Lucas Vazquez for some praise. The winger is often on the receiving end of criticism from a section of Los Blancos' supporters, but he is clearly a player the Frenchman trusts. "The important thing is what I think of him," Zidane said of Lucas in his post-match press conference. "He has all of my love. I believe in him because he's a lovely boy who gives his all on the pitch. "Then people can give their opinion and we have to accept it. "He is a player who has come through the academy and people want to see their players giving everything on the pitch and Lucas gives it. "I'm happy for his goal, for Vinicius [Junior]'s goal, for Karim [Benzema]'s goal..." Luka Jovic started

Arteta on the win, Saka, Nketiah: Press conference Mikel Arteta was a happy man after we secured our third win under him to reach the fifth round of the Emirates FA Cup. Afterwards, he faced the media to discuss the victory, our youngsters' performances, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and more. This is what he said: on making it to the fifth round... I am very pleased. I knew it was going to be tough here. We played a really young squad today and I wanted to see the reaction. I'm very pleased because I saw a lot of things that I really liked. on the injury to Mustafi... They're going to assess him between today and tomorrow but when a player has to come off, normally with a central defender - hopefully I am wrong but - normally it's not good news. on whether it makes a move for Pablo Mari more necessary... No. We had a very clear intention of what we wanted to do in the market with the resources we have and if we can do it, fine. But his fitness [Mustafi's fi

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: Man Utd boss says there is 'no quick fix' at Old Trafford Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer says there is no "quick fix" to improve his squad. Pressure is mounting on Solskjaer to make January signings after Wednesday's 2-0 home defeat by Burnley. It was a second straight Premier League loss and the players were jeered. "We've had one proper transfer window and we're trying to do something now," said Solskjaer, who took over - initially on an interim basis - in December 2018. During the summer transfer window, United spent over £130m on defenders, bringing in Harry Maguire from Leicester City and Aaron Wan-Bissaka from Crystal Palace, and also signed winger Daniel James from Swansea City. Solskjaer referenced the squad-building at Liverpool since Jurgen Klopp took charge in October 2015, with the Reds now 16 points clear at the top of the Premier League and the reigning European champions. "Jurgen

Real Madrid have to be alert to Mbappe's signs - Nacho The Blancos defender would like to see the club try to bring in a World Cup-winning Frenchman who has emerged as a global star in recent years. Real Madrid defender Nacho Fernandez has urged the club to take notice of Kylian Mbappe's hints amid links to the Santiago Bernabeu. Speculation over the Paris Saint-Germain star continues to make headlines during the January transfer window, with Zinedine Zidane's Madrid reportedly eyeing the France international. Zidane has made no secret of his admiration for Mbappe, who dismissed talk over PSG contract negotiations earlier this month, while the 21-year-old revealed the Madrid boss was his idol growing up. Mbappe addressed rumours of a possible move to the Spanish capital during an interview with BBC Sport at the start of the week, stating: "Everyone talks about it - when I was young I talked about it too. But now I'm a player and I know it's not the mome

Manchester United 1-0 Wolverhampton Wanderers, FA Cup third-round replay Juan Mata's superb second-half goal sent Manchester United into the FA Cup fourth round as they beat Wolves. The Spanish midfielder chipped over keeper John Ruddy to settle the third-round replay after being put through on goal by Anthony Martial. Wolves had an early Pedro Neto strike ruled out by the video assistant referee for a handball in the build-up. But it was a deserved win for the hosts, who had the better chances in a tight game at Old Trafford. Manchester United will next travel to either Watford or Tranmere - whose third-round replay at Prenton Park on Tuesday was postponed because of heavy rain. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side did not manage a shot on target in the goalless first game between the two sides at Molineux on 4 January but were much more threatening in this match. An excellent save by Ruddy prevented Mata from opening the scoring in the first half, while Daniel James was also

Gedson Fernandes: Tottenham complete loan move for Benfica midfielder Tottenham have signed midfielder Gedson Fernandes on loan from Benfica for 18 months. The 21-year-old made his debut for Benfica last season and Spurs have the option to make his signing permanent at the end of the loan period. Fernandes won the Portuguese title with Benfica last season and has played 53 times for the club, scoring two goals in the Champions League. He is Tottenham's first signing since manager Jose Mourinho took charge. Fernandes, who has two caps for Portugal, said he will settle in London alongside family who have already made the move. "It's a hard story. My family, they came to London because in Portugal, work is very hard and it's very difficult to find work," said Fernandes. "They did not have a brilliant life but they have a good life here and this is one more motivation for me to be here today. They will help me to settle here. "For me, it's one

Roma 1-2 Juventus Maurizio Sarri's champions go top with win Reigning champions Juventus seized their opportunity to edge two points clear of Inter Milan in the Serie A title race with victory over Roma. Maurizio Sarri's side struck twice in the opening 10 minutes, as Merih Demiral met Paulo Dybala's free-kick before Dybala then earned a penalty which Cristiano Ronaldo duly converted. Roma responded in the second half through Diego Perotti's spot-kick. Antonio Conte's Inter were held to a 1-1 draw at home to Atalanta on Saturday. Meanwhile, third-placed Lazio recorded a 10th consecutive Serie A win against Napoli to sit six points behind Juventus with a game in hand. Ronaldo's ninth goal in seven games appeared to have put Juventus in firm control in a first half overshadowed by a serious-looking injury to 20-year-old Roma midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo, following a challenge by Matthijs de Ligt. But Paulo Fonseca's hosts produced a reaction after th

Leicester 1-2 Southampton: Danny Ings scores late winner Southampton were not motivated by revenge for their 9-0 thrashing by Leicester City in October as they claimed a surprise win at King Power Stadium, says Saints boss Ralph Hasenhuttl. Hasenhuttl's men claimed a deserved victory at the home of the Premier League's second-placed team courtesy of in-form striker Danny Ings' late winner. The Foxes, who were searching for a third successive league win, took an early lead when Dennis Praet tapped in his first goal for the club. But any thoughts of another easy victory for Brendan Rodgers' side were quickly dispelled when Stuart Armstrong equalised with a deflected shot. Ings, who has now scored 10 goals in his last 10 league starts, was a thorn in Leicester's side all afternoon and having already struck the crossbar twice, he slotted through Kasper Schmeichel's legs late on. Leicester thought they had salvaged a draw with a 90th-minute equaliser from Jo

Chelsea transfer news: Chelsea joined by Juventus in Moussa Dembele transfer race as Maurizio Sarri eyes striker Chelsea boss Frank Lampard faces competition from Juventus in the race to sign Lyon striker Moussa Dembele during the January transfer window, as Maurizio Sarri aims to beat his former side to his signature. Chelsea have been joined by Juventus in the race to sign Moussa Dembele from Lyon. Frank Lampard has been keen to recruit Dembele this month, after back-up striker Olivier Giroud reportedly agreed a deal with Inter Milan. Chelsea have been linked with a move for the French forward as a replacement for Giroud. Lampard is trying to recruit Dembele this month. After Tottenham emerged as shock candidates to land Dembele on Friday, the Blues now also face competition from Juventus. The Italian champions want to sign the Lyon striker to relieve some of the pressure on Cristiano Ronaldo, according to The Sun. Ronaldo has scored 15 goals in all competitions this season

Harry Kane: Tottenham 'cannot play like we normally play' without striker - Jose Mourinho No player can take the injured Harry Kane's place and Tottenham "cannot play like we normally play" without him, says manager Jose Mourinho. The striker has been ruled out until April with a hamstring injury that will require surgery. England captain Kane has scored 27 goals in 31 appearances for club and country this season. "If I speak too much about Harry, I get a bit depressed and then you are going to say he is miserable," Mourinho said. "It's better to talk about things that make me laugh." Tottenham host Premier League leaders Liverpool on Saturday at 17:30 GMT. Kane suffered the injury during Tottenham's defeat at Southampton on New Year's Day and will not return to training until April. "You know that we cannot play like we normally play when Harry Kane is in the team," Mourinho said. "We cannot do it the sam

Barcelona 2-3 Atletico Madrid: Angel Correa winner takes Atleti into Spanish Super Cup final Angel Correa scored late on as Atletico Madrid beat Barcelona 3-2 in an incident-packed game to reach the Spanish Super Cup final. Koke's clinical strike put Atletico ahead early in the second half. Lionel Messi equalised and then Antoine Griezmann headed Barcelona into the lead in Saudi Arabia. Alvaro Morata converted a penalty to make it 2-2 before Correra ran through and grabbed the winner with a powerful strike that was too strong for Neto. In the second half, Messi had a goal ruled out by the video assistant referee for handball while Gerard Pique should have taken the game to extra time but sent his header over the bar. Atletico's 20-year-old Portuguese forward Joao Felix, who joined the club for £113m in the summer, was involved in an altercation with Messi in the first half, with the pair going head-to-head. It was sparked by Barca full-back Jordi Alba appearing to