Pep Guardiola can enhance his Manchester City legacy by guiding the club to Champions League glory, according to former Arsenal and Chelsea full-back Ashley Cole.
City beat Spanish champions Real Madrid 2-1 in last week s last-16 second leg to seal a 4-2 aggregate victory and advance through to the final-eight mini tournament in Lisbon.
Lyon are up next in Saturday s quarter-final clash as City look to reach the last four for just a second time, where Bayern Munich await after their 8-2 demolition of another of Guardiola s former teams, Barcelona.
Cole is a big fan of Guardiola s work and believes more silverware could follow should the Catalan coach end his nine-year wait for a third Champions League trophy.
But the Chelsea academy coach also warned Gu…
Jurgen Klopp has described Pep Guardiola as the best manager in the world ahead of Liverpool s showdown with Manchester City on Sunday.
The Premier League champions head to Anfield looking for a win that will take them three points above Liverpool at the top of the table, with only goal difference separating the sides after seven matches.
Klopp says he has huge respect for the way in which City play under Guardiola and described it as exciting to face his teams.
I ve said it a few times, that if we couldn t be champions last season then Manchester City are very welcome, the Liverpool boss told Sky Sports.
They had an outstanding season, I respect it a lot – I love it, actually. Watching them is really good.
My respect for Pep Guardiola could…
Kylian Mbappe was substituted at half-time as runaway Ligue 1 leaders Paris St Germain were held to a goalless draw at his former club Monaco.
France star Mbappe, who is set leave PSG in the summer, waved to home supporters at Stade Louis II as he emerged from the tunnel to take a seat in the stands for the second period.
The 25-year-old forward had little impact on the opening 45 minutes and it was unclear whether his premature departure was due to an injury.
Kylian Mbappe was subbed off at half-time and this was him minutes later…
On the phone to Florentino Perez…?
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He was pictured grimacing and holding his right leg at one stage.
Mbappe was also withdrawn by head coach Luis Enriqu…
Sevilla defender Jules Kounde admitted he could leave the LaLiga side in the off-season amid links with Manchester United.
Kounde has emerged as one of the most sought-after centre-backs in the transfer market after countryman Dayot Upamecano joined Bayern Munich and Ibrahima Konate agreed to swap RB Leipzig for Liverpool.
United have long been linked with a move for Kounde, who helped Sevilla to a fourth-placed finish in LaLiga this term, as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer s Premier League giants reportedly eye a new partner for Harry Maguire.
The 22-year-old France international – also a reported target for the likes of Real Madrid, Chelsea and Arsenal – said he wants to win trophies.
Regarding my future, I may change this summer, Kounde told reporters as Fra…
Lazio have announced the appointment of Stefano Pioli as head coach following Edoardo Reja s resignation.
Reja confirmed his departure on Thursday after failing to secure UEFA Europa League football for next season, with Lazio ending the Serie A campaign ninth.
The Italian had been in charge of the Rome-based club since January, returning for a second spell after Vladimir Petkovic was sacked.
Pioli joins Lazio after suffering relegation with Bologna and ultimately losing his job.
The 48-year-old, a former Juventus and Fiorentina centre-back, has had numerous coaching jobs since hanging up his boots in 1998, including spells with Parma, Chievo and Palermo.
Pioli took over at Bologna in October 2011 and guided the club to ninth and 13th-placed fin…
Jose Mourinho s bid for UEFA Champions League history is alive after reaching the last eight following Chelsea s 2-0 win over Galatasaray.
Mourinho went all the way in this competition with Porto in 2004 and Inter in 2010 and is bidding to become the first manager to the lift the famous trophy with three different clubs.
After a 1-1 draw in Turkey in the first leg, first-half goals from Samuel Eto o and Gary Cahill on his 100th Chelsea appearance sealed a comfortable 3-1 aggregate success for the Premier League leaders on Tuesday, with the long-awaited Stamford Bridge return of Didier Drogba proving an anti-climax.
Eto o opened the scoring with the first attack of the game, controlling Oscar s pass before firing low into the corner and Chelsea made their dominance cou…
Inter captain Mauro Icardi labelled Maxi Lopez ignorant after the Torino striker refused a handshake as the pair s bitter feud continued on Sunday.
A strange football love triangle has developed since Icardi married former Sampdoria team-mate Lopez s ex-wife Wanda Nara, just several months after she divorced the Argentinean in 2013.
The fall-out intensified when Icardi got a tattoo of Lopez s three children on his arm, with the latter then refusing to shake the hand of his countryman in a Serie A fixture in April 2014.
And in another episode of the clash, dubbed the Wanda derby , Lopez bypassed Icardi again before kick-off as Torino stunned Inter 2-1 at San Siro.
Unfortunately these things happen, it depends on the ignorance of certain people, Icardi is …
Atletico Madrid 2 Real Madrid 1 (2-4 agg): Calderon comeback falls short as Isco sets up Juventus sh
Real Madrid reached a third Champions League final in four years after seeing off Atletico Madrid despite a 2-1 defeat in the second leg of their semi-final tie on Wednesday.
Two goals in the first 16 minutes from Atleti threatened to produce another memorable comeback in this season s tournament, until Isco s strike just before half-time effectively ended those hopes and sealed a 4-2 aggregate win.
The players were greeted with a tifo from the home fans proclaiming proud to be different to you as they walked out onto the pitch for the last European game at Vicente Calderon, but Atletico s electric start was very much in the mould of Madrid s in the first leg.
Saul Niguez thumped in a header with 12 minutes gone before Antoine Griezmann converted a penalty to ge…
Market: Nottingham Forest win
Odds: 13/8 @
Looking to extend on what has been a hugely impressive purple patch, Nottingham Forest will make the trip to Bristol City on Tuesday night.
Starting with the hosts, marking their return from October s international break with a flat display over the weekend, Bristol City have shown some real inconsistencies since opening the 2021/22 campaign. Last seen getting hit with what was a deserved 2-0 defeat at home against Bournemouth, Nigel Pearson s men have now managed to win just one of their last four Championship contests on either side of the break. Knowing that they could face another stern test at Ashton Gate on Tuesday night, the one-time Watford boss will have an extended headache over his side s issues on home soil.…
Atletico Madrid have confirmed Marcos Llorente aggravated a thigh injury in Tuesday s Champions League defeat to Liverpool and is being assessed.
The 26-year-old initially sustained the injury during Atletico s 2-0 win over Barcelona on October 2 and was forced to pull out of Spain s squad for their recent World Cup qualifiers.
He was not fit enough to start the dramatic 3-2 loss at the hands of Liverpool but was introduced from the substitutes bench for the final 10 minutes.
Llorente pulled up late on in the game and is now facing another possible spell on the sidelines.
A statement on Atleti s official website on Wednesday read: Marcos Llorente has suffered a relapse in the muscle injury he suffered in his right thigh.
The player has undergone…