Although deployed in an unfamiliar central attacking role, Liverpool forward Sadio Mane sank Watford quickly with his fantastic brace turning into an opening act for a 5-0 thrashing.
The first goal was superbly taken, but the second was as cheeky as it gets. Enjoy.
Unless you re a Watford fan, of course.
Manchester City picked up from where they left off in 2021 by battling to a late 2-1 win over Arsenal, extending their lead at the Premier League summit.
A Riyad Mahrez penalty and a last-gasp strike from Rodri cancelled out Bukayo Saka s first-half opener after Gabriel Magalhaes received a needless red card for the Gunners in an action-packed game – the first top-flight match of 2022.
City s 11th league win in a row means they end New Year s Day with an 11-point advantage at the top, a tally bettered by only two clubs in the competition s history on January 1 – Manchester United in 1993-94 and City themselves in 2017-18 (both 12 points).
There were also victories for Tottenham and West Ham, the London pair seeing off Watford and Crystal Palace respectively…
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has insisted discussions over the future of Granit Xhaka will wait until the end of the season.
Xhaka has been central to the Gunners’ title bid this campaign but is approaching the final 12 months of his deal at the Emirates Stadium.
Bayer Leverkusen are interested in taking the Switzerland international back to Germany, where the midfielder played for four years with Borussia Monchengladbach before he moved to England in 2016.
It has been a rollercoaster journey for Xhaka at Arsenal but his manager is eager to finish strongly in the final two games before he switches his attention to a number of contract scenarios.
Arteta said: “The clarity is there. He is a player that has played I think every minute since I have been t…
Newcastle United suffered their fifth home defeat of the season in the Premier League as Brighton and Hove Albion claimed a 1-0 victory.
Beram Kayal deflected Jose Izquierdo s shot into the net just before the half-hour mark to give Chris Hughton all three points against his old club away from home for the first time.
The result sends Newcastle to the foot of the table, three points from safety and still without a win in the top flight this season.
Rafael Benitez s side controlled much of the possession but could muster little more than half-chances in front of a St. James Park crowd that became increasingly frustrated as the match wore on.
Glenn Murray clashed heads with Federico Fernandez and received six minutes of treatment on the pitch, having appare…
Antonio Conte has expressed sympathy over the situation at his former club Chelsea after owner Roman Abramovich was sanctioned by the UK government.
Abramovich, who has previously been photographed with Russian president Vladimir Putin, had his assets frozen on Thursday, with the decision made in the wake of Russia s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
Chelsea have been granted a special sporting licence to be able to continue trading as a football club, but measures have been placed upon them, including a ban on selling tickets, with only season-ticket holders permitted to attend matches.
Tottenham manager Conte spent two seasons at Stamford Bridge between 2016 and 2018, winning the Premier League in his first year and the FA Cup in his second term, before being sack…
One round remaining, two teams involved, and just two points separate them.
LaLiga s title race has been at its most gripping in years this term, arguably capturing the imagination more than any since 2006-07.
Back then, there were three teams in with a chance of taking home the title on the final day of the season: Real Madrid and Barcelona, of course, plus Juande Ramos Sevilla.
As it was, Madrid and Barca won on the last day whereas Sevilla – who needed a win and for the other two to lose – lost at home to Villarreal.
Madrid finished top by virtue of a better head-to-head record over Barca, who were essentially denied the title by their local rivals Espanyol, slumping to a 2-2 draw with them on the penultimate day to hand Los Blancos the initiative…
Gareth Bale appears to be living on borrowed time at Real Madrid and the summer transfer window could mark the end of his regal dream in the Spanish capital.
The Welshmen joined Real Madrid in 2013 for a then-world record transfer fee. With a little over €100 million paid to Tottenham, Real Madrid broke the 2009 record of €94 million invested in Cristiano Ronaldo. Former Tottenham winger was widely expected to become the Portuguese superstar’s natural successor at Santiago Bernabeu.
Six years into his Real Madrid career, however, it can be concluded that Gareth Bale is a wasted investment.
Troubled Talisman
Once Cristiano Ronaldo announced he would be leaving for Juventus last summer – 45 days following – Real Madrid believed they finally had a ready…
Barcelona are interested in signing Napoli midfielder Piotr Zielinski in the summer of 2024, according to . Zielinski is out of contract at defending Serie A champions Napoli at the end of the season, and reigning La Liga champions Barcelona are keen on securing the services of the 29-year-old Poland international as a free agent.
Zielinski has been on the books of Napoli since 2016 and is one of the best midfielders in Serie A. The Poland international has scored two goals and given two assists in eight Serie A matches and has scored one goal in two UEFA Champions League matches so far this season.
Barcelona are third in the La Liga table at the moment with 21 points from nine matches, three points behind leaders and bitter rivals Real Madrid. Meanwhile, Napoli current…
Market: Both teams to score
Odds: 7/10 @
Looking to build off of their Champions League victory earlier in the week, Manchester United will make the trip to a high-flying Southampton on Sunday afternoon.
Starting with the hosts, although Southampton might have eventually had to settle for a point away at Wolves last time out, it has been a stellar run of form for the South Coast outfit. Despite being unable to call upon an injured Danny Ings, Ralph Hasenhüttl s men are enjoying a seven-match Premier League unbeaten run, their most successful spell since November 2013. Still flirting with the European spots and wit their recent purple patch highlighted by 4-3 and 3-3 draws against Aston Villa and Chelsea respectively, the former RB Leipzig boss has also seen his…
Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis revealed the club s stadium could be renamed to honour Partenopei great Diego Maradona after his death on Wednesday.
Maradona – arguably football s greatest ever player – died at the age of 60 after a suspected heart attack, the Argentine Football Association (AFA) confirmed midweek.
A World Cup winner with Argentina, Maradona enjoyed great success in Naples, where he guided Napoli to unprecedented Serie A glory in 1986-87 and 1989-90 – the Italian team are yet to add to their only two Scudetto honours.
As Napoli fans and Naples natives mourn the death of Maradona – a God-like figure in the city – De Laurentiis said the Stadio San Paolo could be named after the football icon.
A legend never dies
…
Roma manager Daniele De Rossi said his players will not be daunted by the visit of Serie A leaders Inter Milan on Saturday – and insisted “no team is unbeatable”.
Inter Milan secured a 1-0 win against second-placed Juventus last weekend to open up a four-point lead at the top of the table.
Roma, who last month parted company with Jose Mourinho, sit in fifth position, 19 points behind their opponents on Saturday.
Matchday minus one!
— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN)
But De Rossi’s side will face Inter at the Stadio Olimpico fresh from an impressive 4-0 mauling of Cagliari – their third consecutive win since De Rossi took the managerial reins.
Roma have lost five of their previous six league games against Inter – last securing a…