Southgate overcomes ´stigma´ of being sacked to thrive with England

Gareth Southgate has revealed how he had to overcome the mental scars left from his first taste in management at Middlesbrough to prosper at international level with England.

Having played for the club for five years, Southgate was surprisingly appointed Middlesbrough s new boss following the departure of Steve McClaren in 2006.

They finished 12th and 13th in his first two seasons in charge before suffering relegation from the top flight at the end of the 2008-09 campaign, with Southgate losing his job after a rocky start to life in the Championship.

He eventually returned to coaching in 2013, taking charge of England s Under-21 team before stepping up to the full side, initially on an interim basis before being appointed permanently in November 2016.

Inter Milan interested in Mertens

According to a recent report from Mediaset, Inter Milan are optimistic that they’d be able to complete the signing of Napoli forward Dries Mertens during the summer transfer window. 

Mertens has been heavily linked with a move away from the club in the last few months, although fans had been second guessing themselves regarding whether or not he’d move to one of their Serie A rivals. Given the amount of money that is being thrown around by Inter at this moment in time, it certainly wouldn’t be all too surprising to see the veteran make the jump. 

Inter seem to be serious about their title challenge and as we look ahead to the future, they’re going to be big players both in Italy and in Europe. If nothing else, Mertens could be interested in trying to add a few…

Prediction: Inter Milan vs Lazio

As for the visitors, while Lazio may have picked up a much-needed 2-0 win over Parma over the weekend, the Blues have continued to show some worrying inconsistencies. Opening their Europa League campaign with a shock 2-1 defeat away at Romanian outfit CFR Cluj, Head Coach Simone Inzaghi has seen his men win just one of their last four contests across all formats. While Lazio will know that a surprise victory in midweek could see them leapfrog Juventus, Roma, and Napoli, they have shown some issues outside of Formello. Lazio have lost back-to-back matches on the road for the first time since the start of April. If Lazio are to pick up back-to-back victories over Inter Milan at the San Siro, then Wednesday s traveling support will be looking for attacking talisman Ciro Immobile to extend …

Ronaldo to Juventus: Break-up comes at right time for Madrid

A Hall of Fame baseball executive by the name of Branch Rickey once said, trade a player a year too early rather than a year too late .

The parallels between baseball and football aren t numerous, but in allowing Cristiano Ronaldo to leave for Juventus, Real Madrid have abided by Rickey s ethos.

Ronaldo agreed to join Juventus on Tuesday in a transfer reported to be worth €105million.

The five-time Ballon d Or winner has been a sensation at the Santiago Bernabeu since his then world-record move from Manchester United in 2009, contesting a seemingly endless battle with Barcelona great Lionel Messi for the title of best player on the planet.

In doing so he has helped deliver four Champions League titles  Madrid becoming the first team to win the competi…

A-League: Sanchez strikes late to sink Victory, Adelaide United back to winning ways

Victor Sanchez scored a late winner as Western United came out on top in a seven-goal thriller with Melbourne Victory, while Adelaide United held off Western Sydney Wanderers on Saturday. 

Marvel Stadium was the stage for an A-League drama in the late kick-off, with Western United rallying from 1-0 down to lead 3-1 – only to then have a man sent off as Melbourne fought back to draw level.

Callum McManaman opened the scoring for the home team but Sanchez s first of the contest, plus a brace from Besart Berisha, put Western United in command. 

However, they were reduced to 10 men when Tomislav Uskok saw yellow for a second time. Jacob Butterfield closed the gap just after the hour mark and Rudy Gestede made it 3-3 in the 82nd minute, heading in a cr…

Divock Origi will leave Liverpool

According to , Liverpool striker Divock Origi will leave the club at the end of the season. It has been reported that the departure of The Belgium international will open a spot for the defending English champions to bring in a replacement.

Origi has been on the books of Liverpool since 2014, but the 25-year-old striker has failed to establish himself in the first team. While the former Lille star scored important goals for Jurgen Klopp’s side in their Champions League success in 2019, he has been essentially a squad player at Ibrox.

It would not be a big loss for Liverpool if Origi leaves Anfield at the end of the season. For the striker himself, it would make sense for him to find a new club where he can play regularly and kickstart his career. According to , the 25…

Prediction: Leeds vs Derby

Verdict: Leeds win

Best Odds: 

Bookmaker: 

Looking to book a Play-off Final showdown against Aston Villa at Wembley later this month, Leeds will welcome Derby to Elland Road on Wednesday night.

Leeds

Starting with the hosts, while Leeds may have struggled with their consistency at the back end of the season, Marcelo Bielsa s side will be boosted by their 1-0 victory at Pride Park on Saturday. Although the Whites would have been disappointed to have had to settle for a spot in the play-offs after ending their Championship campaign by picking up one-point out of a possible 12, the former Napoli boss will be calling for his side to continue their performances at Elland Road. Leeds have won 10 of their last 15 second-tier matches in West Yorkshire, with t…

Arsenal 3-1 West Brom: Gunners consign Allardyce to first Premier League relegation

Sam Allardyce finally suffered the sinking feeling of relegation from the Premier League after Arsenal beat West Brom 3-1 at the Emirates Stadium.

Albion needed a victory in north London on Sunday to keep their slim hopes of avoiding the drop alive, but the Gunners sent them down with three games to play.

Emile Smith Rowe put Arsenal in front with his first Premier League goal and Nicolas Pepe added a stunning second six minutes later.

Matheus Pereira pulled one back midway through the second half, but Willian rubbed salt into Albion s wounds by scoring an elusive first Arsenal goal late on with a brilliant free-kick.

Victory for Arsenal, who are facing a tough task to qualify for European football next season, shattered Allardyce s proud record o…

Bayern Munich 2-1 Sevilla (aet): Martinez the unlikely Super Cup hero against obdurate opponents

Javi Martinez was Bayern Munich s unlikely hero as the Spaniard came off the bench to head in an extra-time winner in the 2-1 Super Cup victory over Sevilla.

Hansi Flick s treble-winning outfit struggled against a stubborn Sevilla side who had been unbeaten since February – a run that included a record sixth triumph in the Europa League, formerly the UEFA Cup – and the LaLiga side went ahead through Lucas Ocampos penalty.

Leon Goretzka levelled before half-time but Bayern s run of 22 successive victories would have come to an end had Youssef En-Nesyri not been thwarted by Manuel Neuer in the dying stages of normal time.

But it was fellow substitute Martinez, linked with a return to Athletic Bilbao after eight years in Bavaria, who scored his first goa…

Sergio Ramos eyeing 200 games after equalling Spain record

Spain captain Sergio Ramos said his goal is to reach 200 international appearances after equalling Iker Casillas record.

Ramos moved level with Casillas as Spain s most-capped player following his 167th cap in Sunday s 4-0 rout of the Faroe Islands in Euro 2020 qualifying.

After matching Casillas in the Group F qualifier, the 33-year-old defender – who debuted in 2005 – said: Records are there to be broken.

I hope that this momentum, enthusiasm and ambition always accompanies me and that I reach 200 games, which is the objective.

You have to make it difficult.

Un partido con muchos significados.
A match with many meanings.
Capítulo 
Chapter
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— Sergio Ramos (@SergioRamos)

Casillas praised Ramos after the Spain…