Lucas Beltran was Fiorentina s hero as his late penalty in a 1-1 draw with Club Brugge ensured they progressed to the Europa Conference League final.
Beltran held his nerve from the spot to score an 85th-minute equaliser, earning a draw on the night but a 4-3 aggregate victory.
Fiorentina won the first leg 3-2, but Hans Vanaken s 20th-minute opener levelled the tie on Wednesday.
Christian Kouame hit the woodwork twice for Fiorentina, but the pressure finally told when Brandon Mechele caught M Bala Nzola with a high boot.
Beltran made no mistake, with Fiorentina holding firm to seal their place in the final in Athens on May 29.
Fiorentina lost last season s final to West Ham, and the Serie A club will now face either Olympiacos or Aston Villa.
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Roberto Mancini is eyeing a return to club management in one of Europe s major leagues, though added that he still harbours hopes of taking charge of the Italian national side.
Former Manchester City boss Mancini has been without a club since he left his post at Inter in August 2016, having guided the Nerazzurri to a fourth-placed finish in 2015-16.
And now Mancini has revealed he turned down offers from China in order to stay in Europe, refusing to rule out a return to the Premier League which he won with City in 2012.
In the future I would love to coach the Azzurri. To lead your country is the crowning ambition for any coach, Mancini told the Sunday Post newspaper.
For the moment, though, I want to continue
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working with club teams.
Bayern Munich goalkeeper Manuel Neuer has suggested he could leave the club at some point in the future.
The Germany international joined Bayern from Schalke in July 2011 and has since developed into the Bundesliga champions undisputed number one.
However, Neuer has hinted that he could end his career elsewhere.
I am feeling well at Bayern Munich, but I cannot rule out that I will one day get the idea that I want something else, the 29-year-old told Der Westen.
But I still have a contract until 2019 and it is only January 2016 now
Neuer has won three Bundesliga titles since joining Bayern and he is determined to make it four in a row this campaign.
We are not getting any presents. No team is giving anything away against us, he add…
Barcelona have confirmed record revenues of €990million during the 2018-19 campaign, though the club s profits fell from 2018.
Ernesto Valverde s side retained their LaLiga title last term, though the season ended in disappointing fashion with a Copa del Rey final loss to Valencia following a disastrous defeat to Liverpool in the Champions League semi-finals.
Off the pitch Barca who last year stated an intention to make €1billion in revenues by 2021 are in a strong position, having far surpassed last season s then-record total of €914m.
However, operating profit stands at €17m, down from last season s €32m, while the club s net profit for 2017-18 was €13m, up from the €4.5million announced for 2018-19.
The club have already made major mov…
According to Marca, Manchester United are extremely eager to keep hold of forward . Despite many rumours suggesting that the Frenchman would be on his way out of Old Trafford this summer, it seems as if The Red Devils have had a change of heart and want to ensure that the 22-year-old continues his development under the guidance of Jose Mourinho as opposed to elsewhere.
The main club who have been sniffing around is , who have shown interest in Martial many times over the last twelve months and beyond. However, courtesy of United s desire to keep him, they may end up slapping a €113 million price tag on the youngster to try and scare Spurs away.
Martial first moved to England back in 2015, and initially, it seemed like he could become the next big thing in the Premier …
Wilfried Zaha is staying at Crystal Palace, manager Roy Hodgson has confirmed.
Zaha signed a new five-year contract at Selhurst Park in August 2018 but was heavily linked with Arsenal and Everton and handed in a transfer request this week.
However, Hodgson insists Palace s business for this window is finished and that means keeping hold of the club s star attacking asset.
The former England manager acknowledged Zaha s desire to leave and confirmed he sent the player home from training on Thursday.
However, he does not expect any lingering problems with the winger heading into a Premier League season where Palace are many people s tip for relegation
Yes, he s staying, we are pleased about that. He s an important player for the club, Hodgson told S…
Andrea Pirlo is not overly concerned by Juventus poor run of form, although he knows his team must return to winning ways when they face Crotone on Monday.
Juve have not won in three matches in all competitions, following up a 0-0 Coppa Italia draw with Inter – which nevertheless secured their place in the final – with defeats to Napoli in Serie A and Porto in the Champions League.
Their performance against Porto was particularly lacklustre, but Pirlo believes the fixture congestion since the turn of the year is a major factor.
The Bianconeri played nine times in January and have been in action on a further five occasions in February, with two games every week in 2021 until now.
I speak with the president after every game. We spoke after the game…
Erik ten Hag accused his Manchester United players of sleeping in their friendly defeat to Cadiz and says the first-half display was not acceptable .
United lost 4-2 to the LaLiga strugglers at Estadio Nuevo Mirandilla on Wednesday in their first of two warm-up matches before the season resumes in a fortnight.
The Red Devils were two down inside 14 minutes in Spain, but they levelled up through Anthony Martial s penalty and a deflected Kobbie Mainoo strike either side of half-time.
But United, who fielded different sides in each half, conceded two more goals and manager Ten Hag was not pleased with what he saw from his experimental side.
It is quite clear. We were not awake, still sleeping, in first 15 minutes, he told MUTV. They are a threat in transiti…
Mikel Arteta concedes Gabriel Martinelli deserves more game time than he is getting at Arsenal and says the forward is pushing hard to play a greater role for the Gunners.
Martinelli was on target as Arsenal defeated Newcastle United 2-0 at Emirates Stadium on Saturday, just 93 seconds after replacing Bukayo Saka – who had opened the scoring.
The Brazilian has played only 367 minutes across nine appearances in all competitions this season, with just four of those as part of the starting line-up.
His goal against the Magpies was his first of the campaign, while he has yet to register an assist from the five chances he has created.
But Arsenal boss Arteta believes the goal can act as a springboard for a player whose attitude continues to impress the Span…
FIFA president Sepp Blatter led the tributes to Christian Benitez as the world of football mourned his death.
The Ecuador international, 27, was taken to hospital on Monday complaining of stomach pains and suffered a fatal heart attack.
Benitez had made his debut for Qatar Stars League side El Jaish Qatari El Jaish on Sunday in their 2-0 win over Qatar SC in the Sheikh Jassem Cup.
Saddened by the death of Chucho Benitez. My thoughts are with his family and Ecuadorian Football, posted Blatter on Twitter.
English Championship club Birmingham City also honoured the striker.
Benitez enjoyed a year-long spell at Birmingham during the 2009-10 season, scoring four goals in 36 appearances for the club.
A statement of the club s official website read: Birming…