• Video of the youngster visit to the popular Nigeria pastor surface online.

• Gomez: ‘I didn’t really need to explain myself but a lot of people was asking me what the video was about.

• Arsenal Legend jumped to Gomez defence.

Manchester United starlet Angel Gomes has urged people to concentrate on ‘more important issues’ after a video of his visit to a pastor claiming to have healing powers resurfaced on social media.

Gomes’ future has been the subject of widespread speculation, with his contract due to expire at the end of the month, but the 19-year-old has made headlines for a very different reason this week.

Back in 2016, Gomes made a trip to see renowned Nigerian pastor T.B. Joshua at The Synagogue, Church Of All Nations in Lagos and footage of his experience began doing the rounds on Monday evening.

In one of the clips, the England youth international, then aged just 16, explained that persistent injury problems were the reason for his visit.

‘I’ve been struggling with injuries. I was having injuries around my hip and groin which was affecting me playing and I also suffered an ankle injury which was affecting me playing and kept me out for a long time,’ he said in the video.

‘These injuries were coming at hard times for me, times when I was having a breakthrough or times when I had to go to a tournament or play in games. These injuries would happen quite frequently.’

On Tuesday morning, Gomes addressed the reaction to the videos and admitted the footage might look ‘crazy’ but stressed that he should be able to practice his faith however he wishes.

‘Regarding the video that has come out from 2016. I am from a Christian family at the time my mum was a fan of the pastor, and she really wanted me to go,’ Gomes tweeted.
‘I was going through some issues.
‘From the outside looking in it looks crazy, but I was just practicing my faith.’

Gomez added: ‘I didn’t really need to explain myself but a lot of people was asking me what the video was about.
‘I was young at the time and if my parents thought something was best for me I would do it.
‘There are far more important issues out there in the world we can tackle. For example #FreeSchoolMeals #maketheUturn.’

Former Arsenal striker Ian Wright showed his support for Gomes as he responded to the youngster’s explanation.
‘Absolutely none of their business [love heart emoji],’ Wright replied.

Gomes became the youngest player to make a first-team appearance for the Red Devils since Duncan Edwards when he debuted against Crystal Palace back in May 2017. But Gomes’ opportunities have been limited since then and the teenager has played just six times for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side this term.

Barcelona and Chelsea have both been heavily linked with Gomes in recent weeks, with the England Under-20 international set to become a free agent this summer.

Phil Neville has openly revealed that he wasn’t a fan of Fabian Barthez when playing alongside each other at Manchester United.

The former United full-back spent four years with Barthez at Old Trafford, though Barthez was loaned to Marseille for the fourth, after Sir Alex Ferguson splashed £7.5million on the goalkeeper in 2000 following a recommendation from Eric Cantona.

There were big gloves to fill after Peter Schmeichel’s departure in 1999 but there were high hopes for Barthez, who arrived on the back of lifting the 1998 World Cup and EURO 2000 with France.

After a positive first season in between the sticks, the stopper endured a 2001/02 campaign to forget as numerous mistakes led to Arsenal snatching the Premier League title.

Speaking to DAZN, quoted by Metro, Neville was unreservedly honest when outing Barthez as a team-mate he never really rated too highly:

“I was never a fan of Fabien Barthez. He obviously won a World Cup, he had a brilliant left foot but I was never a fan. He let goals in so easily. He had a great temperament, he was brave but he just let too many [goals] in.”

Barthez was part of the United squad for three seasons – spending his fourth on loan at Marseille – and joined the French club permanently at the end of the loans in 2004, as Tim Howard took his place as United no. 1.

• Japhet Tanganga out of United clash

• Dele Alli has already been suspended for social media conduct

The Telegraph have revealed that Japhet Tanganga will also be absent for Spurs after being ruled out with a back stress fracture, goin into Friday’s restart against United.

The 21-year-old defender has played an important role in Mourinho’s plans since the turn of the year, so it comes as another blow for Spurs and another boost for United.

Back in March, United were ready to head to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on the back of an 11-match unbeaten run.

Spurs were struggling without star man Harry Kane in particular before the Shutdown, losing five of their last six games and drawing the other.

The break has helped the likes of Kane, Heung-min Son and Steven Bergwijn return to full fitness though, similarly to how United have regained the services of Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford.

Jose Mourinho has already been dealt a blow in the last few days though, with Dele Alli suspended for the United game due to social media misconduct.

And now, the former Manchester United manager will be without another of his first-team stars through injury.

This comes after their preparatory match against Reading was cancelled after a Norwich City player tested positive for COVID-19 after the Canaries defeated Spurs last week.

Friday’s hosts haven’t had the ideal preparation, so let’s hope the Reds can capitalise and reboot the strong run of form.

 

Bayer Leverkusen chief Fernando Carro admits the club are resigned to the fact Kai Havertz is ready to take the ‘next step’ in his career amid speculation linking the midfielder with Chelsea and Bayern Munich.

Havertz, 21, has established himself as one of the most promising youngsters in European football after racking up 11 goals and five assists in the Bundesliga this season.

Chelsea verbally agreed a deal with Dortmund’s Timo Werner earlier this month and Havertz looked set to follow his fellow countryman to Stamford Bridge, with Frank Lampard’s side were favourites for his signature.

However, the latest reports suggest Bayern are confident of landing Havertz and are closer to Leverkusen’s £75million valuation of the Germany international than Chelsea.

Asked about the rumours surrounding Havertz’s future, Leverkusen CEO Carro told Kolner Stadt-Anzeiger : ‘Many clubs are interested in him.
‘I see the player’s wish to take the next step sometime in the near future.
‘You have to respect that as much as the fact that he has a contract until 2022.’

In another interview with Infobae, Carro insisted Leverkusen were open to all possibilities ahead of the summer transfer window but that Havertz was fully focussed on the remaining games of the club’s campaign.
‘Kai has been with us for ten years, he is a player who is fully integrated and devoted to the club, but he wants to take a big step,’ he said.
‘All the great clubs in Europe are after him and for us, in the end, what the player wants is what is important.
‘We would of course like him to keep playing here. He is a very disciplined person with an old head on young shoulders.

‘We are open to see what will happen in the future, nobody knows.
‘At the moment he is focussed on the season with us. He has been injured the last two games but we hope to have him for the last few fixtures.’ Carro concluded.

• UK government makes U-turn and will now provide food voucher for school children after Rashford campaign.

• Rashford had a wrote letter to MPs on school children food voucher.

• Rashford’s letter to MPs was retweeted more than 140,000 times on Twitter.

• Rashford wants others to think about struggling parents during this period.

Food vouchers, for £15 a week, will be made available to those children in England who are currently eligible for the scheme. The scheme will cost about £120m, and will lapse for six weeks in what has been called a “Covid Summer Food Fund”.

Free school meals will be provided to around 1.3 million children during the summer holidays, in a U-turn by the government sparked by a campaign from Marcus Rashford.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s spokesman said he “understands children and parents face unprecedented situations” during the coronavirus outbreak.

The spokesman added Mr Johnson welcomed Rashford’s “contribution to the debate around poverty and respects he’s been using his profile as a leading sportsman to highlight important issues”.

As a striker with a killer instinct in front of goal, Marcus Rashford is used to beating defences.

And he’s cut straight through a nervous defensive wall of Conservative ministers – leaving them wrong-footed and facing an embarrassing own goal.

The Department for Education had initially said it would not extend the voucher scheme despite an emotional letter to MPs written by Rashford, in which he said “the system isn’t built for families like mine to succeed”.

But the government has changed tact after Manchester United striker Rashford kept up his campaign. Responding to the news, the 22-year-old tweeted: “I don’t even know what to say. Just look at what we can do when we come together, THIS is England in 2020.”

Rashford’s letter to MPs was retweeted more than 140,000 times on Twitter.

After initial pushback, he kept up the pressure for a second day – sparking a tetchy exchange with Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey on the social media site.

In an open letter to MPs posted on Monday, the Manchester United forward drew on his own experience of relying on free school meals and food banks growing up.

I don’t even know what to say.
Just look at what we can do when we come together, THIS is England in 2020.
— Marcus Rashford (@MarcusRashford)
June 16, 2020

The footballer had asked others to think about struggling parents who have had their “water turned off” during the coronavirus lockdown, and whose children have gone hungry.

Rashford’s Manchester United team face Tottenham Hotspur tommorow in what will be their first competitive game in three-months.

Napoli will go into coppa Italian cup final on Wednesday with the hope of having another one over the Italian league leaders, Juventus. Napoli got the better of the Turin side, when they last met in a coppa final, 9 years ago.

A win this time around will be more memorable, given the fact that Juventus then was just building a dynasty. Now they have become the best club in Italy having won the last eight Seria A title in succession. Juve have also won the Coppa Italia for four consecutive seasons until the last campaign, when they were eliminated by eventual runners-up Atalanta in the quarterfinals.

The match pits Juve boss Maurizio Sarri against his former club as he goes in search of his first trophy in Italian football. Meanwhile, for Napoli’s new coach, Gennaro Gattuso, it will be a second Coppa Italia final appearance in three years. However, he will be hoping to forget his first experience, as his AC Milan side were hammered 4-0 by Juve in 2018.

In terms of importance, for Juventus, it’s bottom of their priority list behind the Champions League and Serie A. While Lazio fans held street parties in Rome after they beat Atalanta in 2019, there was no open-top bus, but the trophy was paraded in front of their fans before the next league game against Bologna.

Despite that, Juve should still be favourites, but in 2012, they won Serie A unbeaten in Antonio Conte’s first campaign in charge and lost the Coppa final to Napoli. Neither Juve nor Napoli looked particularly impressive in their returns to action, with both sides wrapping up their semifinal wins on away goals. Both Serie A encounter between the two sides were tight, with the home side winning by a single goal in each instance (Juve 4-3 Napoli in August, Napoli 2-1 Juve in January).

For Napoli, who will most probably be without Hirving Lozano, cup victory over this present, all-conquering Juventus side would mean a lot more, to the manager, who is still mourning the death of his sister, club, supporters and everyone associated with Napoli.

Borussia Dortmund manager Lucien Favre has hinted Jadon Sancho could be sold this summer, with a number of Premier League clubs interested in the winger.

The Former Manchester city youth player is being chased by Manchester United and Chelsea, and reports also have it the triplets of Liverpool, Real Madrid and Barcelona are also interested in the 20 years old. The sticking point for clubs interested is Dortmund’s £100million asking price for the England international.

Reports recently confirmed that Bayern Munich have set Achraf Hakimi as their main target for next transfer window.

When asked about Sancho and full-back Achraf Hakimi, Favre said: ‘Obviously players will go and we hope that they stay but it’s possible that they may also leave.
‘You have spoken about two players who we don’t know definitively what will happen – they could stay with us, that’s clear and that would be good for me. We’ll see what we’ll do in defence, midfield or attack.’

But clubs are having it difficult to match Dortmund’s £100million asking price for the England international, because of the adverse effects of coronavirus pandemic.

Reuters are reporting that the final three rounds for Europe’s biggest club soccer competition will all take place in Lisbon, with eight quarterfinalists competing for the crown in the capital city of Portugal. The plan is expected to be formally presented and ratified during a UEFA executive meeting on Wednesday. The Champions League, like all major soccer competitions, was suspended in mid-March due to the covid19 pandemic. UEFA wanted to give domestic seasons a chance to finish before resuming UCL play and had been targeting an August return.

The quarterfinals and semifinals will both be condensed to one leg in an effort to finish the season in a more timely manner, according to Reuters. Here’s the reported schedule with games expected to be completed behind closed doors:

Champions League draw: Mid-July in Nyon, Switzerland, according to Sky Italia

Quarterfinal round: Week of Monday, Aug. 10

Semifinal round: Tuesday, Aug. 18 and Wednesday, Aug. 19

Champions League final: Sunday, Aug. 23

Four round of 16 second legs still need to be completed, and those games will take place at their scheduled venues, per the report. Four teams have already punched their tickets to the UCL quarterfinals: Paris Saint-Germain, RB Leipzig, Atalanta and Atletico Madrid.

Atletico Madrid knocked out defending champion Liverpool shortly before the shutdown.
The Europa League will have a similar finish to its season with games being played at neutral sites in Germany, according to the report.

Istanbul was originally set to host the 2020 Champions League final on May 30. The
Turkish city will now instead host the 2021 final.

Major domestic soccer competitions have restart in recent weeks. The Bundesliga resumed play in Germany last month, and soccer returned in both Spain and Italy just last week. The Premier League is set to return on Wednesday, with Man City facing Arsenal, A match that will see Arteta and his former boss come face-to-face, has a full slate of games on the calendar for this weekend.

France’s Ligue 1 was the only major competition to cancel the remainder of its season.

• Chelsea wants to sell six players to fund their summer transfer

• Bakayoko among the six players

• The blues already signed Ziyech and close to announce Werner

MilanNews reported last week that Monaco will not exercise their right to buy the 25-year-old, and that Milan dream of forming a Bennacer-Bakayoko pairing in midfield for next season.

Il Corriere dello Sport (as cited by TMW ) report that Milan are working hard to secure a return for Bakayoko and that talks have begun, but Chelsea, for now, though are not backing down from the €42million transfer fee they agreed with Monaco.

According to the latest report from The Sun , Bakayoko is among six players that Chelsea wish to sell to fund three big signings, the other five being Emerson Palmieri, Davide Zappacosta, Danny Drinkwater, Michy Batshuayi and Victor Moses

The Blues have already signed Hakim Ziyech and are close to being able to announce the capture of RB Leipzig striker Timo Werner, but they have now set their sights on Leverkusen playmaker Kai Havertz and Leicester left-back Ben Chilwell.
Chelsea are hoping to raise around €170m from the sale of the aforementioned players.

Calciomercato (h/t Daily Mail) understands that Manchester United are planning a summer swoop for Lazio forward Ciro Immobile.

Immobile, 30, rose through the ranks of Salernitana’s youth system and joined Juventus’ youth side in the summer of 2007. Though he was successful with the Turin-based club’s youth sides, he failed to make it through to the senior set-up. He was sent on several loan spells and signed for Genoa in 2012.

The Italian made himself known in the Serie A with Torino in the 2013/14 season, where he record 22 goals in 33 league games. He then move to Borussia Dortmund and later to Sevilla before joining Lazio in the summer of 2016. Since then, he has been in top form and his impressive performances have already generated attention from Liverpool and Napoli,

Man United have been strong both in the attack and in the defence prior to the suspension of the season. The arrival of Bruno Fernandes has seen the Red Devils lift themselves in terms of attack, and the defence has been strong, conceding just 2 goals in the last 11 games. However, with the new season approaching soon, the manager has to bring in reinforcements.

Anthony Martial, Mason Greenwood and Odion Ighalo are the three centre-forwards available at the manager’s disposal. Martial has seen a rise in his form of late and Greenwood has done a decent job despite being just 18. Ighalo has just extended his contract for one year with the club, but Ciro may be the leader United need upfront.

• Real Madrid beat Eibar 3-1 at empty 6000 seater Alfredo Di Stefano stadium

• Benzema, Marcelo and Bale on the score sheet

• Real Madrid within two points of arch rival Barcelona

Los Blanco’s returned to La Liga with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Eibar in their first match since swapping the Santiago Bernabeu for their empty 6,000 capacity Alfredo Di Stefano Stadium.

Eden Hazard was heavily involved as first half strikes from Toni Kroos, Sergio Ramos and Marcelo, who took a knee to celebrate in solidarity with protesters worldwide over Gorge Floyd death.

After Barca took the lead just over a minute into that win over Mallorca, it took their title rivals little over three to get going against their relegation threatened visitors.
Hazard was involved initially, but when the ball broke to Kroos on the edge of the area the German was able to expertly plant a well-struck effort into the top corner.

Real’s second then arrived when Ramos intercepted a pass halfway inside his own half before finding Karim Benzema and bursting forward.
Good work from Benzema eventually found Hazard clean through on goal, and although the Belgian could well have shot he opted instead to roll a pass across the six-yard box for Ramos to tap in.

Two soon became three when Benzema played Hazard through, and after his effort was saved by Marko Dmitrovic the follow up was blasted home by Marcelo.
The Brazilian left-back then took a knee in celebration as he raised his fist to the sky.

Eibar pulled a goal back on the hour mark when Pedro Bigas’ shot from the edge of the area took a deflection and squirmed through Thibaut Courtois’ legs to give the visitors some hope.

Gareth Bale was soon introduced as a 61st minute for his first appearance since the Champions League defeat to Manchester City in February.

The win take Real Madrid to within two points from league leaders Barcelona, who won 4-0 at Mallorca on Saturday.

• Chelsea whipped Queen Park 7-1 in a friendly at Stamford Bridge

• Loftus-cheek and Gilmour netted braces

• Kante, Pulisic features

Chelsea hammered QPR 7-1 in a friendly Stamford Bridge, as USMNT star Christian Pulisic featured for the Premier League side.

The west London club beat Reading 1-0 earlier this week in a game at their Cobham training ground and they followed that up with a resounding victory against another Championship opponent.

Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Billy Gilmour both netted braces with Mason Mount, Willian and Olivier Giroud also on target against the Championship club at Stamford Bridge.

Christian Pulisic and N’Golo Kante featured, as the USMNT star continues to step up his recovery after last playing for Chelsea on Jan. 1 at Brighton. An adductor injury in training meant he was out for several months and he was due to return in mid-March before the Premier League was suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Pulisic has featured in both friendlies this week and Frank Lampard certainly has a wealth of attacking options now that Loftus-Cheek has also returned from a long-term injury. Chelsea currently sit in fourth but are just three points ahead of Man United in fifth and may only be two points ahead of Sheffield United by the time they restart their 2019-20 season.

The suspension came at a good time for the Blues as Pulisic, Tammy Abraham and several others were nursing injuries and not fully fit as Lampard’s young squad looked jaded with many in their first full season in the Premier League.

Even better news for Chelsea was N’Golo Kante taking part in a friendly for the first time since the league was suspended on March 13. The French star was concerned about a return to training amid the coronavirus pandemic and was granted compassionate leave by Chelsea and Frank Lampard.

Kante has since returned to training and is now stepping up his progress as he aims to be ready to feature against Aston Villa next Sunday

There has been rumours surrounding kante Chelsea career recently, with some sport outlet reporting a possible move to PSG when the transfer window opens.

• Sancho does not need to leave “esteem club” Dortmund

• The EPL would present different challenge

England boss Gareth Southgate insists Jadon Sancho doesn’t need to leave Borussia Dortmund amid transfer speculation linking him to a move to Manchester United . Sancho appears to be United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s top target ahead of the summer transfer window following three impressive years at Dortmund.
England boss Gareth Southgate had a message for Borussia Dortmund star Jadon Sancho

The star winger has recorded 20 goals and 20 assists in 41 appearances across all competitions this season and Solskjaer sees him as the perfect candidate to add in some firepower in attack.

However, Southgate doesn’t feel like the England international needs to leave Dortmund to take the next big step to his development as he already plays for an esteemed club.
The Three Lions manager insists that the 20-year-old just needs to get regular playing time regardless of where he plays at.

Southgate said: “I think the key is he [Sancho] has got to play football. The beauty of him playing at Dortmund is that he has played regularly.
“He’s playing in a team that is expected to hit a certain level in front of 80,000 fans every week before this period.

The England manager is unfancied about where the young midfielder play as far as he is playing regularly, although, he points out the premier league will present a “different challenge” for Sancho

“The Premier League would provide a different challenge to that. I think the depth of the league [in England] is a bit more intense in terms of the quality. From a personal point of view, for England whichever route opens up I think is positive because he will play at Dortmund.

“He will play at a good club. He’s well looked after by the staff there. They give the right messages.

“So there isn’t a downside for us if he stays with Dortmund at all, and if we see him in the Premier League then that brings different opportunities in a different environment and to see how he adapts to that. But the most important thing is that he keeps playing regularly and at his age that is key to him learning and improving.” added Southgate.

Southgate will be looking to have all his star players in good shape ahead of the Euro cup next year. Euro 2020 was postponed to 2021 due to the outbreak of cov-sars-2.

• Gattuso dedicate Napoli win to his late sister

• He pays tribute to Napoli players

The Napoli boss’ family were struck by tragedy after her passing – but the Serie A giants rallied to defeat Antonio Conte’s men and seal a spot in the final against Juventus on Wednesday.

Dries Mertens became the club’s all-time leading goalscorer after cancelling out Christian Eriksen’s bizarre opener, and Gattuso also paid tribute to his players after Napoli progressed 2-1 on aggregate.

Italian daily La Repubblica reported then that Francesca underwent surgery and was taken in the intensive care unit but suddenly she got worse on the following Tuesday.
She was hospitalized after getting ill in February.

Francesca worked with AC Milan before her death and according to a statement released by Milan to confirm her death, “Francesca Gattuso faced her illness with the same strength and energy she brought to Milanello [AC Milan training facility] and AC Milan every day. Rino [Gennaro], the immense pain you and your family are feeling is also ours. Rest in peace, dear Francesca,”

The Former AC Milan coach, Gennaro Gattuso has dedicated Napoli’s Coppa Italia semi-final triumph over Inter Milan to his late sister Francesca, who tragically died earlier this month at the age of 37.

PSG have announced Edinson Cavani and Thiago Silva will leave the club upon the expiry of their contracts.

The Uruguay striker, Cavani, 33, has been linked with Atletico Madrid and River Plate in Argentina while 35-year-old Silva, the French club’s former captain, is set to depart after eight years at the Parc des Princes.

The Brazilian defender has been linked with a free transfer to Everton in recent weeks.
“Edinson Cavani and Thiago Silva will leave PSG at the end of the season, it’s confirmed,” sporting director Leonardo told reporters.

• Barca 4-0 to the good against Mallorca

• Braithwaite scores first Barca goal

• Barca now 5point clear of second-placed Real Madrid

Barcelona were 4-0 winners in their first game since LaLiga Coronavirus pandemic forced suspension three months ago.
Arturo Vidal open scoring for the blaugrana in the second minutes.

While new boy, Matin Braithwaite scored his first goal, since joining from Leganes for 18m euros in January, for the club to make it 2-0. Jordi Alba, who also provided an assist in the game, made it three for barca

Before Messi, who shrugged off injury to feature in the game, made it 4-0 in the 90 minutes. That is Messi’s 20th Laliga goal of the current campaign

Barcelona now 5points clear at the top of the the log, Real Madrid play on Sunday against Eibar at the Santiago Bernabue.

Napoli reached the Coppa Italia final with a 1-1 draw at home to Inter Milan on Saturday as forward Dries Mertens became the club’s all-time record scorer.

Dries Mertens became Napoli’s all-time top scorer after netting an equaliser during the second leg of his side’s Italian Cup semi-final with Inter Milan.
Belgium forward Mertens slotted home his 122nd goal for Napoli four minutes before half-time to level the scores at 1-1 at the Stadio San Paolo and put them 2-1 ahead on aggregate.

Mertens, 33, overtakes Marek Hamsik and moves seven clear of Diego Maradona, who scored 115 goals in all competitions over his seven tumultuous years in southern Italy.
Mertens moved to Napoli from PSV Eindhoven in 2013 and has become so settled in Naples that fans have nicknamed him ‘Ciro’, a hugely common Neapolitan name.

Inter went ahead after two minutes of the semi-final second leg when Christian Eriksen scored direct from a corner, badly misjudged by goalkeeper David Ospina, but Mertens levelled before halftime with his 122nd goal for the club in all competitions.

Both teams were playing their first game since the end of the three-month stoppage for the coronavirus and the pace dropped considerably in the last 20 minutes despite both teams making the permitted five substitutions.

Napoli went through 2-1 on aggregate thanks to their 1-0 win at San Siro four months ago and set a date with Juventus in Wednesday’s final in Rome.

• Bayern needs to win one of the remaining three matches

• Pavard with an assist and a own goal

• Espanyol, two-zero winner against 10-man Alaves

• Leganes lost at home to Valladolid

Leon Goretzka strikes late as Bayern Munich take another step towards title

Leon Goretzka’s 86th minute goal gave Bayern Munich a 2-1 victory over visitors Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday, meaning they need only one win in their last three matches to secure the Bundesliga title.

Bayern would have claimed the trophy with the win if Dortmund had drawn against Dusseldorf, but a last-minute goal from Halaand delay the party.

Goretzka tapped in Benjamin Pavard’s cutback to send Bayern seven points clear at the top of the table from Borussia Dortmund .
Bayern took the lead in the 26th minute when Gladbach keeper Yann Sommer, having made a sensational save only seconds earlier, passed the ball out into the path of

Bayern’s Joshua Zirkzee, who fired home. The visitors, themselves in the hunt for a Champions League spot, went into the break level when France international Pavard scored an own goal as he attempted to clear a Patrick Herrmann cutback. Sommer made amends with a fine save from a Serge Gnabry effort but was helpless a little later when Goretzka showed up with far too much space in the box to snatch the winner.

Bayern, who could seal the title on Tuesday at Werder Bremen, are on 73 points, with Dortmund on 66. Gladbach remain fourth on 56.

Meanwhile, in Spain, Valladolid and Espanyol both came out victorious against leganes and Alaves respective.

Espanyol, who sit at the bottom of the table, were off to a winning start at home to Deportivo Alaves. Alaves played 71 minutes of the match with one man less after Fernando Pacheco was redcarded in the 19 minutes.
Espanyol capitalize on the extra man advantage and in the 45minutes, Benardo open scoring for the home side, Lei Wu net the second two minutes later.

Leganes sit three points from safety, in 19th position, upon the restart of LaLiga, making their home form vital to their hopes of staying in the Spanish top-flight. But that hope suffer a setback after losing 2-1 at home to Valladolid.

Enes Unal open the scoring for the visitor after just 2-minutes into the game, before Ruben Alcaraz added the second in the 54th minutes. Oscar Rodriguez scored an 84th minutes penalty to make it 2-1.

Leganes and Espanyol now level on points at the bottom of the Laliga table.

• Relegation-threatening Fortuna Dusseldorf lost at home

• Halaand came from the bench to score a last-gasp winner

• Bayern have to for at least another match after tonight for Bundesliga title

Borussia Dortmund substitute Erling Braut Haaland headed a stoppage-time winner to give them a 1-0 victory at Fortuna Düsseldorf on Saturday and keep their slender Bundesliga title hopes alive and delay Bayern’s title celebration by a game after tonight.

Haaland scored on the last attack of the game to lift second-placed Dortmund to 66 points, meaning Bayern Munich would not be able to seal the title in the late kick-off against Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Dortmund had been the superior side in the first half, with Jadon Sancho crafting several opportunities – but without Haaland on the pitch after a recent knee problem, BVB were guilty of spurning several fine chances.

Haaland was introduced in the second half and had a role in Guerreiro finding the net, only for his effort to be wiped out by a VAR review for a handball, before Halaand himself find the back of the net with the last attack of the game.

Fortuna, in the relegation play-off spot, twice hit the woodwork through Steven Skrzybski, first in the 82nd minute with a low shot and eight minutes later after breaking clear. But Haaland made sure of a last-gasp win when he rose high to connect with a Manuel Akanji cross to hand the yellow and black an important three points.

Dortmund return home on Wednesday as they host Mainz at Signal Iduna Park. Dusseldorf face another tricky test, as they go to RB Leipzig the same day.

• Vettel to leave Ferrari at end of the 2020.

• Webber thinks it will be 2022 before his teammate return to the road

• Ferrari will miss him

Nine-time Grand Prix winner Mark Webber believes four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel needs to spend a year on the sidelines to “reinvent” himself before returning to F1 and competing at the front.

The relationship between the German and his team appears consumed, and few predict a happy campaign for the pair in the coming months.
But Webber, who spent five seasons alongside Vettel at Red Bull Racing, believes Ferrari will eventually miss a driver of the calibre of Vettel.
“Seb, under that [Ferrari] regime, they did what they could, but I think he’s literally just run out of puff there,” said the Aussie in an F1 Nation podcast.

“He’s clearly not getting out of bed motivated to drive a red car.
“Yes, he’s had some challenging times at Ferrari, no question about it, but I still think they will miss him – short term they’ll miss someone of his experience and vision.”

Vettel’s options for 2020 appear limited, with barriers of entry erected at Red Bull and Mercedes. A seat is available at Renault but many doubt the 32-year-old would resort to taking a step back and racing in the midfield.

A plush retreat seems like Vettel’s most likely alternative, but Webber sees his former teammate jumping back into the fray in 2022, if the right offer comes along.
“I think he’ll have a year off,” he said. “I hope for all of us he can rejuvenate himself and get back into the spirit of wanting to be competing at the front again in Formula 1.
“I think he can reinvent himself, but he’s got to have the atmosphere. I think he really, really, really misses the English way about going racing [as he had at Red Bull]. I think he really enjoyed that.”

After a five-year spell with Ferrari, Vettel will leave the Italian outfit at the end of the 2020 season, hopefully with more wins under his belt, although securing that elusive title with the Scuderia will be a tall order.

While most clubs are being conservative with their finances in the wake of the coronavirus, Chelsea FC is going full-blown in the transfer market, scooping up all of the top talent.

The Blues have signed Hakim Ziyech for €40 million, Timo Werner for €60 million , and they’re reportedly interested in Kai Havertz for €80 million. The spending spree will force Chelsea to take a long look at their roster and make cuts in order to balance the books.

According to AS, one player who could be sacrificed to free up space in the wage bill is N’Golo Kante. The Spanish publication reports that Real Madrid is interested in the 29-year-old who is under contract with the London-based club until 2023.

Paris Saint-Germain has been linked with the Frenchman in the past as well.
If either club wants to sign Kante, they won’t get him cheap. Transfermarkt sets his market value at €80 million and according to the AS report, Kante earns €8.7 million per year in salary. As good as the former Caen midfielder is, I can’t see PSG spending that amount of money on just one player when it’s been reported that PSG could likely sign Sergej Milinković-Savić and Adam Marusic from Lazio for that same figure.

On Neymar transfer

No club has been able to escape the negative effect of Coronavirus on finances, not even Paris Saint German, its on this note that the Spanish Football President, Javier Tebas expect the financial fallout to have a major effect on this summer transfer window.
Reduced transfer fees, loans, and player swap deals will be preferred over big-money signings. With PSG wanting €175 million for Neymar, I think it’s safe to say that the 28-year-old superstar will be with the Ligue 1 champions for one more season at the very least.

The realities of the situation have been noticed by La Liga president Javier Tebas who has been very critical of PSG in the past. According to the Express, Tebas confirmed that a Neymar-to-Barcelona transfer is simply not possible.

“The Neymar-type transfers will not happen,” Tebas said. “There may be exchange deals but that does not bring money into the league. There will be a few big moves, but nothing like we have seen before. The transfer market will be subdued. It is clear that there will be fewer direct cash transactions. There will be more player swaps.”

So, the next time you come across a headline insinuating that Barcelona could sign Neymar ahead of next season, I suggest you save your click for something a little more believable.

• Man United played a 2-leg friendly against west brom
• United lost the first but won the second

The Reds announces they lost the first game but won the second.

United intended to face Stoke City at Carrington on Tuesday, but the fixture was called-off after Potters boss Michael O’Neill tested positive for Coronavirus on Monday.

The club faces Tottenham away from home on Friday in their first competitive fixture since defeating LASK in the Europa League on March 12.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer selected two mixed sides to take on the Championship oponent in two matches, which was separated by two hours as United prepare to return to Premier League action in 3months.

ZSB understand Paul Pogba and Bruno Fernandes was part of the first group alongside Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Daniel James. They were joined by Eric Bailly, Axel Tuanzebe and Teden Mengi.

The second group includes, David de Gea, Harry Maguire, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Luke Shaw were all present along with Scott McTominay, Fred and Odion Ighalo.

United, who are looking to strengthen their squad in other to challenge for trophies next term, confirmed they suffered a 2-1 defeat in the first friendly clash, with Bruno Fernandes scoring their only goal from the penalty spot. However, they won the second 3-1 thanks to a brace from Andreas Pereira and a goal from Tahith Chong.

Furthermore, the club added that some players took part in both games in order to increase their match sharpness. Balls were also disinfected during the game and water breaks were taken throughout.

United will look to extend their 11-match unbeaten run in all competitions against Jose Mourinho’s Spurs side next week who will be without Dele Alli due to suspension.

Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero says the Swiss Maestro clearly belongs to the top of the sport’s hierarchy owing to his achievements and likability
Roger Federer is often called the greatest tennis player ever by both fans and insiders. The Swiss champion has had a very long career at the highest levels, winning 20 Slams and over 100 ATP titles (not to mention the record of weeks at the top of the ATP ranking).

The 38-year-old from Basel had to undergo further surgery on his right knee which will prevent him from returning to play in 2020. Federer has expressed his desire to take all the time necessary to return to top form, so he has already given the appointment for the beginning of 2021.

In a podcast with some Spanish journalists, the former World number 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero reiterated all his admiration for Federer, who beat him in 10 of 13 direct clashes on the ATP circuit.

Ferrero affirms: ‘Federer is the best player in tennis history’
“Roger Federer is the only person who makes me feel lower on the court, and is the best player in history for me!” Juan Carlos Ferrero said, picking the Swiss Superstar over his countryman Rafael Nadal.
“They (Big 3) are definitely the top 3 players in history,” Ferrero explained. “Novak Djokovic is the most compact of the three, physically suffering little disability. He is a very good athlete with height, weight and great flexibility.
He also plays well on all surfaces. (He) is one of the few players who put Rafael Nadal’s head in trouble,” he added.

The Spaniard, who was later asked to give his thoughts on the other players who are younger than Big 3.
“I think the most deserving person to win a Grand Slam is Dominic Thiem. He is doing very well with Nicolas Massu,” Ferrero said.

Perhaps those restrictions help explain why Federer, in his announcement of his plans via Twitter, didn’t seem too discouraged: “Now, much like I did leading up to the 2017 season, I plan to take the necessary time to be 100 percent ready to play at my highest level.

I will be missing my fans and the tour dearly, but I will be looking forward to seeing everyone back on tour at the start of the 2021 season.” Federer said.

It’s also possible that Federer and his team have concocted a long-term game plan designed to provide more daylight between Federer, with his 20 majors, and the hard-charging Nadal (19) and Djokovic (17). We don’t know who is going to win this race but we can expect this battle to be absolutely entertaining.

Juventus reached the Italian Cup final on Friday after a goalless draw with 10-man AC Milan in the semi-final, second leg in Turin as football restart in Italy after three months away.

Serie A champions Juve advanced on away goals to Wednesday’s final in Rome thanks to February’s 1-1 first-leg draw at the San Siro, despite an under-par display against a Milan side who played 74 minutes with a man less and which featured a missed Cristiano Ronaldo penalty.

“It was odd and difficult at the start, playing in an empty stadium after 90 days away,” said Leonardo Bonucci to public broadcaster RAI 1.
“We’ve shaken off a dark moment for the whole world. I hope being back will offer the fans at home a bit of hope and joy. We want to give them something more on Wednesday.”

A feisty start belied the two teams’ long absence from the pitch, with Juve — missing the likes of Giorgio Chiellini and Gonzalo Higuain — roaring out of the blocks and Milan putting in some questionable challenges to try to stop themselves from being overrun.

Juve should have been ahead in with just 15 minutes on the clock when Andrea Conti clipped the ball in the penalty area with his elbow and conceded a penalty after a VAR check.

Ronaldo hit the woodwork with the resulting spot-kick, but while that should have been a reprieve for the away side, they found themselves a man down seconds later when Ante Rebic kicked Danilo in the head.

With Zlatan Ibrahimovic out injured and Samu Castillejo suspended, Stefano Pioli’s side were missing some firepower going forward, but managed to create problems for Juve despite spending most of the match on the back foot.
Hakan Calhanoglu had Milan’s best chance two minutes after the restart, flashing a free header wide, while Simon Kjaer should have done better with another header 10 minutes from the end.

However Juve also had their chances, with Milan stopper Gianluigi Donnarumma doing well to keep out Blaise Matuidi’s thumping close range effort on the half-hour mark, and two great efforts from Paulo Dybala and Alex Sandro late in the second half.

The match was played on the day Italy would have kicked off Euro 2020 in Rome had the tournament not been postponed for a year, due to the outbreak of Coronavirus pandemic.
More than 34,000 people on the peninsula have died because of the coronavirus with the vast majority in northern regions like Piedmont and Lombardy which host Juve and Milan.
Both teams held a minute’s silence before kick-off for those who lost their lives to the virus before breaking out into applause for healthcare workers, three of whom were stood in the centre circle.

Juventus players warmed up before the match in T-shirts with the message “No Racism”, while Milan wore tops on with “Black Lives Matter” written on them, in solidarity with global protests over the death of African-American George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Few fans were hanging around the stadium told AFP that they were excited to see football come back as the country edges towards normality again.
However they were sad that matches had to take place without the passionate support that accompanies most matches in Italy.

“It’s hard for a team not to be able to count on the presence of the cheering fans,” said Massimiliano Balduzzi, 47, from Bergamo, one of the country’s worst-hit areas.
“I believe that there should always be cheering at the stadium. Unfortunately, with what happened, we can only keep on waiting and hope that everything will go well.” Balduzzi added.

The match could not provide any goal despite so many opportunities presented to both team. Speaking after the game, Juventus manager Maurizio Sarri seemed satisfied by how his side had started the clash but unsatisfied afterwards.

“Clearly after three months, getting back to the touchline and seeing the teams out there is a good sensation, even if it’s not the same without the fans.
“I was very surprised and satisfied with our opening 30 minutes, as we moved the ball so quickly and totally dominated the game, even before the red card.
“After that, we slowly dropped our tempo, intensity and mental determination, but that is a risk in an empty stadium. We had been doing so well, playing one and two-touch football, but then we slowed down and lost some sharpness, focused more on individual moves and taking two touches.

“The positive is that we didn’t allow the opponents to play at all. It’s going to take a while to get the fitness and mentality back to 100 per cent. If you compare it to a pre-season game, it’d be early July, but this is worse than pre-season, because it was a much longer break.
“It’ll take some patience, but the first 30 minutes I saw today was an excellent sign.” conclues Sarri

The hosts absolutely dominated possession in the beginning stages of the game, passing it fluently and stretching a poor Milan side, but failed to capitalize, including a Cristiano Ronaldo penalty missed penalty which led to Ante Rebic’s red card soon after.

At the capital’s Stadio Olimpico, Maurizio Sarri’s side will face either Napoli or Inter Milan, the last side Juve faced before football entered into its coronavirus-enforced suspension in March.

Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has confirmed that Manchester United and Real Madrid are interested in signing 16-year-old starlet Rayan Cherki.
The youngster has enjoyed a breakthrough campaign for the Ligue 1 outfit in 2019-20, making 12 appearances while scoring three goals and creating two more.

Even before he debuted for Lyon against Dijon last autumn, though, his talent had caused ripples across Europe and Aulas claims that two of the biggest clubs in the world were seeking to sign the 16-year-old prodigy.
A number of Europe’s biggest teams are thought to be keeping tabs on the attacking midfielder’s progress and, while Aulas revealed the interest of two of those, he insists that Lyon are not planning to sell the starlet any time soon.

“It’s clear that he’s going to be a player who’s going to make it to the top. That’s why we made a big effort to get him to sign with us,” Aulas told Telefoot.

“The two players interested when the player signed his contract were Real Madrid and Manchester United. We want him to triumph with us, we want to help him, and we want him to grow in a progressive way.
“Our aim is to have a leader in the attack for the next few years, if not a leader from our youth system.” Said Aulas.

Cherki signed his first professional deal with Lyon earlier this year and is contracted to the club until 2022.

Lyon face a summer of uncertainty, with Memphis Depay’s contract up next summer, while their only route into Europe next season is by winning the Champions League following a seventh placed finish in the aborted Ligue 1 campaign.

They hold a 1-0 advantage over Juventus after the first leg of their last-16 tie in the European competition.

• Juventus stars shocked with Ronaldo’s mentality.

• De Ligt also hailed Ronaldo “best of his generation.”

Ahead of the Serie A’s resumption as they have never seen him so motivated for a game before. The season is set to restart tonight with Juve and AC Milan colliding in the Coppa Italia semi-finals after three excruciating months for Italy with the coronavirus pandemic recording a total of 236,142 cases and 34,167 deaths in the Mediterranean nation.

According to Tuttosport, Ronaldo is ready to leave it all out on the pitch and his team-mates have taken note as they see the kind of passion in his eyes that they have never witnessed before.

The star forward is determined to win the treble this year starting with the Coppa Italia as Maurizio Sarri’s men are favourites to make it to the final.
The Italian champions drew 1-1 with Milan in the first leg at the San Siro thanks to the Portugal international equalising after Ante Rebic opened the scoring.

The 35-year-old will also look to seal the Serie A title, as Juventus are top of the table, and will also focus on leading the Turin giants to their first Champions League triumph since 1996.

Former Arsenal star Aaron Ramsey, who now plays with Ronaldo at Juve, recently opened up about the Portuguese star’s training regiment claiming that he is always the first man in and the last one out of the gym.

De ligt was one of the stars at Ajax when they knocked out Ronaldo’s Juventus in the champions league quarter final stage in 2018/19 season, before eventually losing to Tottenham Hotspur in the semi finals.

Recently, Having seen what Ronaldo is capable of at close quarters, former Ajax defender De Ligt has praised the quality of his team-mate.

“Ronaldo is the best of his generation and a huge example for young players,” the Dutchman told Tuttosport . “I always try to improve the way I play by watching him because even in training he has a crazy intensity and you wonder if he really is 35 years old.
“We really have a good team, a lot of good guys. The most fun are the South Americans. Beside Ronaldo, I was impressed by Paulo Dybala and Rodrigo Bentancur: both players with an amazing technique. Rodrigo in particular is underestimated, he will have a great future ahead of him.”

The Madrid based club have been tipped to sign Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne by Erickson.

Former Manchester City boss Sven-Goran Eriksson thinks Raheem Sterling and Kevin De Bruyne can leave the Etihad Stadium to join Real Madrid if they choose to do so.
City are facing the prospect of losing several key men if their two-year Champions League ban is upheld.

The Citizens were punished for breaking Financial Fair Play regulations but have appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, who heard their case earlier this week.
A final decision is expected to be revealed in July but if City’s ban is upheld then Sterling and De Bruyne could be the first out of the door.

Both De Bruyne and Sterling have enjoyed success at Man City under Pep Guardiola and a deal for the both look unlikely.

Zinedine Zidane will look to strengthen his Real squad this summer as he faces the prospect of a rare trophyless season.
And Eriksson thinks the Frenchman could take advantage of City’s situation – although he hopes Pep Guardiola can retain his key assets.

“Well, they will play for Real Madrid if they want to do it, but I would be disappointed,” Eriksson told Stats Perform News.
“”I don’t know – I really hope they stay in England.

“When you look at it so far, and for many years now, the Premier League is the best league in the world, no doubts about that – most popular, the best league to see.

“Other leagues are good, but how many people are looking at Spanish football if it’s not Barcelona or Real Madrid, maybe Atletico Madrid? I don’t think many.

“Bundesliga, it’s a little bit the same if [Borussia] Dortmund’s not playing, if Bayern [Munich] is not playing, are you sitting looking at it?”

“In England it’s different because any team can beat any other team. It’s good football and it’s always a fight, a good fight in England.” Erickson concludes.

City could also face losing Guardiola when his contract expires next year if he does not sign an extension.
“Of course it’s important,” Eriksson said of the Spaniard’s future. “He’s considered one of the best, if not the best coach in the world. He has been so for a long time.

Bayern have also been showing interest in German winger, Leroy Sane.

Barcelona are reportedly willing to cover a portion of Philippe Coutinho’s wages in order to facilitate his departure from the club this summer.

Now 28 years old, Coutinho was sold by Liverpool to Barcelona in the January 2018 transfer window for an initial €105m, with the Reds using the cash to finance the purchases of Virgil van Dijk and Alisson.

Coutinho, who is currently on loan at Bayern Munich, earns more than £200,000-a-week, which Barcelona understand will be difficult for most clubs to afford in the current economic circumstances.

As reported by The Telegraph , Barcelona are prepared to sanction Coutinho’s departure whether as part of a swap deal or a transfer.
Also according to The Sun sport reporter, Chelsea could get Coutinho for £55m plus a defender.

Tottenham is also interested in the former Liverpool star, who alse favour a move back to the EPL. It remains to be seen where he does end up but in the former Liverpool man, Mourinho could discover Spurs’ Christian Eriksen replacement.

The Dane departed for Inter in January after scoring 69 times and contributing 89 assists for Tottenham so there is a clear creative void left in the team.

Coutinho is a player in a similar mould, capable of finding the back of the net from range and setting up goals for his teammates on a regular basis.
His time in Bayern may not have been completely successful, starting just 15 Bundesliga matches, but he still has eight strikes (nine in all comps) and six assists in the league. Even when he’s not at his best, he’s still a thrilling player to watch – he could well be game-changing for Mourinho’s side.

After all, he rates him extremely highly. Before signing for Barcelona, the Portuguese boss said he’d value the midfield man at £101m.

Newcastle also reportedly started talks with Barca over a possible deal for the Brazilian. But any deal materializing will depend on the takeover bid at the Tyneside. Saudi crown prince, Mohammed Bin Salman, wants to takeover in a £300million deal at but an investigation into several issues surrounding the buy-out by the Football Association is stalling sale.

If the takeover eventually pull through, the 27-year-old’s most likely destination appears to be Tyneside, should their £300million Saudi-led takeover go through, according to
France Football .

Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez are pushing FC Barcelona to re-sign Neymar this summer, according to transfer expert Duncan Castles.
When playing together at Barcelona, the three men combine to score a whopping 122 goal in 2014-15 season.
Messi scored 58 goals total (43 in liga, 10 in UCL and 5 in spanish cup.)
Neymar scored 39 goals total(22 in La Liga, 10 in the Champions League and 7 in the spanish Cup)
Suarez scored 25 goals total (16 in La Liga, 7 in the Champions League and 2 in the spanish cup)

Barca’s “MSN” was one of the best front-lines in Europe and the best in Spain ahead of Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, and Gareth Bale.

PSG announced they had signed Neymar at a world-record fee of €222 million (£198 million) in August of 2017. Even though the Brazilian has tasted success in France, having won three straight Ligue 1 titles, he has never been content at PSG and has been wanting to return to Barcelona for some time now.
It was recently reported that Neymar has even confided to his close teammates that he wants to go back to the Nou Camp side.
Neymar is also determined to leave Paris-Saint Germain and return to his former club Barcelona, they are unable to reach an agreement with PSG in Neymar’s transfer. The French side has demanded Barcelona to pay $196 million in cash if they want to re-sign the world’s most expensive player. While the Catalans have offered a few players as a part of the deal in a bid to reduce the transfer fee, PSG have made it clear that they will accept no bargain in this case.

Speaking on the Transfer Window Podcast , Castles has explained that both Messi and Suarez want Neymar back, as they did last summer. Unfortunately, Barcelona was forced to back out because of the same reason, the higher transfer fee.
“There’s pressure on them to sign Neymar internally. In the camp, Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez would like to see him come back. They pushed for that move last summer,” Castles added.

Arsenal are regarded as favourites to sign RB Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano this summer.
With just over a year to run on his current deal, Upamecano is hesitating at opening talks about a new contract.

BILD reported RBL are now prepared to sell, and Arsenal are regarded as favourites to land the France international.

Upamecano’s deal carries a €60m buyout clause, however given his contract situation and RBL’s willingness to sell, the defender is expected to leave for a heavy discount.
Just this week, RBL chief Oliver Mintzlaff declared: “‘Upa’ is an extremely important player for us and one of the most sought-after talents in Europe.
“And we can assure that we have a clear understanding with him and his agent he won’t leave us on a free. We can’t afford that as a club.
“There are only two options: prolong or leave. I am sure we’ll soon find out in which direction it’s going.” Says Mintzlaff.

In an update regarding the club’s interest in the RB Leipzig star, Football London Arsenal writer James Benge told supporters in a Q&A session earlier in the month that the defender’s asking price which was £70m last summer is likely to drop.
“Arsenal’s interest in Upamecano is genuine and long-standing,” Benge said. “Arsenal have been tracking Upamecano for several years. Contrary to reports at the time they did not make a bid for him last summer, largely because he was out of their reach at in excess of £70million.
“As things stand that will change this summer, when the 21-year-old will have just one year left on his contract.
“Reports in Germany are that he has rejected a new deal, leaving Leipzig in that awkward position of cashing in or risking losing Upamecano for nothing. If that is the case Arsenal clearly have cause for hope.
“They have laid the groundwork for some time and Upamecano dreams of a move to the Premier League.”

It remains to be seen if the Gunners are able to get a deal done for Upamecano as reports suggest they could face competition for his signature from La Liga giants Barcelona.