Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane believes the French Football Federation (FFF) would be making a big mistake by allowing Karim Benzema s ban from international football to move into the European Championships in June.
Benzema was suspended from representing France at any level by the FFF until the legal investigation into his involvement in an alleged plot to blackmail international team-mate Mathieu Valbuena has been concluded.
France is the host of Euro 2016 and Zidane believes his country will be severely hurting its chance of a home triumph by not selecting Benzema.
France cannot afford to ignore a player of Benzema s calibre, Zidane told Le Foot.
When we look at his numbers and everything he does on the field, we cannot let a play of this level go…
Switzerland striker Josip Drmic will miss Euro 2016 after undergoing surgery on a knee injury.
The 23-year-old came on as a substitute during Hamburg s 1-0 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday and sustained cartilage damage.
The club confirmed the diagnosis on Tuesday, adding in a statement: The Swiss must be operated on and will be out for the rest of the season .
Drmic, who is on loan from Borussia Monchengladbach until June and has subsequently played what will likely be his last game for Hamburg, vowed to battle back to fitness as soon as possible.
Hallo Fans,heute ist ein trauriger Tag für mich: Ich habe gerade die Diagnose erhalten, dass ich mir im Spiel gegen
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Kevin De Bruyne came back to haunt his old club as his fine strike handed Premier League leaders Manchester City a 1-0 win over Chelsea on Saturday.
Against no side has De Bruyne scored more Premier League goals than he has against the Blues (five), with this total the most against Chelsea by any player who has previously played for them in the competition.
Elsewhere, Manchester United threw away a two-goal lead at Aston Villa to draw 2-2, with Philippe Coutinho sealing a point on his debut following his loan move from Barcelona.
Wolves beat Southampton 3-1 and Norwich City piled the pressure on Rafael Benitez with a 2-1 win over Everton, while strugglers Newcastle United and Watford played out a 1-1 draw.
Here, Stats Perform unpacks the pick of the Opta …
Gregg Berhalter believes his United States team will capture the imagination of viewers at home after drawing on the American spirit to reach the World Cup s last 16 at Iran s expense.
Christian Pulisic s close-range finish fired the USA to a 1-0 win over Iran at the Al Thumama Stadium on Tuesday, ensuring the Stars and Stripes leapfrogged their opponents to finish second in Group B, behind England.
Pulisic was forced out of the contest after colliding with Iran goalkeeper Alireza Beyranvand as he scored the goal, but that blow was not enough to dampen Berhalter s spirits.
With the 2026 tournament taking place across the USA, Mexico and Canada, much of the talk around Berhalter s team has focused on their ability to win over new fans at home, and the head coach b…
Declan Rice’s ambition to play “at the very highest level” was behind his “tough” decision to leave West Ham.
The 24-year-old’s departure from the club he joined a decade ago in a club-record £105million deal – making him the most expensive English player in history – was confirmed by the Hammers ahead of his imminent move to Arsenal.
Rice’s last act as a West Ham player was to become only the third captain in their history, behind Bobby Moore and Billy Bonds, to lift a major trophy after last month’s Europa Conference League victory over Fiorentina.
Declan Rice has penned an open letter to West Ham fans.
— West Ham United (@WestHam)
But the England international wants to play in the Champions League and that is something A…
Scotland midfielder John McGinn felt Georgia were “at it” when showing reluctance to get their Euro 2024 qualifier resumed at a sodden Hampden.
McGinn was full of praise for the team of ground staff, ball boys, stewards and Scottish Football Association officials who helped sweep the pitch of excess water following a heavy downpour in the hour before kick-off on Tuesday.
The game was suspended immediately after Callum McGregor fired Scotland into a sixth-minute lead and only resumed close to two hours later following extensive work on the pitch, several pitch inspections and false dawns.
Georgia did not appear ahead of one scheduled restart time before the game eventually got back under way at 9.33pm before Scotland went on to win 2-0.
McGinn said: �…
Brahim Diaz s first goal since October gave Milan a 1-0 victory over Tottenham in the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 tie.
Diaz had gone 12 games without a goal for the Serie A champions but stunned Spurs with an early header on Tuesday.
Tottenham saw plenty of the ball but were unable to come up with an equaliser on former Inter boss Antonio Conte s return to San Siro.
Milan had been without a win in seven matches before beating Torino last Friday, but Diaz gave them back-to-back victories and a slender advantage to take into the second leg at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on March 8.
— AC Milan (@acmilan)
San Siro erupted when Diaz opened the scoring in the seventh minute, diving to nod in on the goal-line after Fraser…
UEFA president Michel Platini on Thursday vowed to ask authorities in Kiev why Ukraine s preparations to co-host the 2012 European Championship with Poland have been delayed.
We ll see if there is political stability (in Ukraine), said Platini after the UEFA Congress meeting here.
I ll go to Kiev in April and I will have a frank and serious conversation with the new government to see the situation, and also maybe bang my fist on the table a bit.
We are confident (that Ukraine will be able to co-host the tournament) but I ve seen photos of the stadium and I m not completely reassured. We can t change the date. It will be Euro 2012, not 2014.
Ukraine s preparations to organise the quadrennial football showpiece have been hit by political turmoil and se…
Antonio Conte believes he witnessed a turning point for his Napoli side as they strolled to a 3-0 win over Bologna in their Serie A home opener on Sunday.
Napoli were trounced 3-0 at Verona in Conte s first league game at the helm last week, but they bounced back with a comfortable win over the Rossoblu on Sunday.
The Partenopei s victory was their first on home soil without conceding since they beat Sassuolo 2-0 in August 2023, and Conte feels it was an important moment in his team s development.
Today we had a great responsibility, that of giving a great response after the second half in Verona, Conte told reporters.
I had no doubts, these guys are good guys. I see them working and I got important answers.
These are three points that are the …
Former Manchester City playmaker David Silva has said his goodbyes to football as the World Cup winner and four-time Premier League champion announced his retirement.
The 37-year-old played 436 games across 10 seasons at the Etihad Stadium, helping to turn City into the best team in England and winning a total of 11 major honours with the club.
Silva started his career in the youth ranks at Valencia, making his senior debut in 2004 and spending six years in LaLiga before signing for City.
Muchas gracias…fútbol
— David Silva (@21LVA)
He was capped 125 times by Spain, scoring 35 goals and winning the 2010 World Cup, Euro 2008 and 2012.
“Today is a sad day for me,” he said in a message posted on his Twitter account.
“Toda…