Former Crystal Palace midfielder John Salako believes Manchester United recruit Wilfried Zaha could be the replacement for Cristiano Ronaldo.
United wrapped up a 17-million pound January deal for the services of Zaha, which will see the gifted 20-year-old stay on loan with Palace until the end of the season and then move to Old Trafford.
And Salako who is also a youth coach with the London club suggests with enough hard work and determination, Zaha can fulfil his potential with the English Premier League leaders and emulate the 2008 Ballon d Or winner s success.
Manchester United never really replaced Cristiano Ronaldo and I really do think Wilfried Zaha s got that kind of ability, he told Goal.com.
If he can match half of Ronaldo s dedication, drive,…
Republic of Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni feels his team fully deserved a point following their 0-0 draw away to Sweden on Friday.
Ireland needed a positive result in Stockholm to try and keep pace with second-placed Sweden and top side Germany in Group C of qualifying for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
Austria s 6-0 win over the Faroe Islands saw Ireland slip to fourth in the group, and they remain hard-pressed to book a spot at the tournament in Brazil next year.
Nevertheless, veteran Italian coach Trapattoni was proud of his players performance against their more-fancied opponents.
We started very well, he told RTE.
The team started with confidence. We deserved the draw, because we changed the team, and some players, and their performance wa…
Arsenal would lose their identity if Arsene Wenger left because the Frenchman is the club, according to Germany hero Lukas Podolski.
Wenger s 21-year tenure could be drawing to a close amid fierce criticism from fans after six defeats in all competitions since the end of January saw the Gunners humiliated by Bayern Munich in the Champions League and slump to sixth in the Premier League.
But Podolski – who marked his 130th and final Germany appearance with a spectacular winner against England on Wednesday – is one man who would mourn the end of an era at a club where he spent three years between 2012 and 2015, winning the FA Cup once.
I follow nearly every match – when not live, on social media – and I don t know what s happened, Podolski told Sky Sports …
Legendary athlete Michael Johnson believes the corruption crisis engulfing athletics is worse than the one experienced by football governing body FIFA.
An independent commission set up by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) released the second part of a report into corruption in athletics last week, in which it said corruption was embedded within the IAAF and that members of its council must have known about the extent of doping in athletics.
It was also claimed by investigator Dick Pound that athletes from Russia and Turkey who failed drugs tests paid bribes to cover up the results, while former IAAF president Lamine Diack is currently under investigation amid allegations he received payments to cover up failed drugs tests from Russian athletes.
Football …
Full-back Andy Robertson says he is only getting started at Liverpool and expects to improve even more in 2019-20.
The 25-year-old joined the Reds from Hull City in 2017 and has wasted little time in establishing himself as one of the best defenders in the Premier League.
He made 48 appearances last season as Jurgen Klopp s side finished second in the top flight with 97 points and won the Champions League.
Robertson admits there was a steep learning curve when he joined the club, but believes he has kicked on over the past two seasons.
There has been a lot happening in a relatively short period of time but I ve loved every minute of it, he told the club s official website.
Of course, at the start it was a lot tougher; there was still a big learn…
According to Il Corriere dello Sport, Italian giants are adamant that they aren t going to be selling this summer. A series of clubs from across Europe have shown their interest in acquiring his services, but now, it seems as if the 2017 UEFA Champions League finalists are putting their foot down and letting it be known that his future lies in Turin.
The 32-year-old has been at the club since 2015, with past stints at Wolfsburg, Bayern Munich and Atletico Madrid. He s currently over in Russia attempting to help guide Croatia to a strong World Cup finish, but upon his return, it seems as if he ll be diving straight back into work with the Italian champions as they prepare to make another run at winning the European Cup.
With Buffon, Lichtsteiner and Asamoah all making…
Romelu Lukaku s transfer to Inter has moved closer after the Serie A club agreed a fee with Manchester United.
Omnisport understands Inter will pay €80million (£73m) to make the Belgium striker their record signing.
Lukaku arrived at Milan Malpensa Airport during the early hours of Thursday morning and was enthusiastically greeted by around 500 Inter fans.
Inter boss Antonio Conte tried to sign Lukaku during his time in charge of Chelsea, only for United to get their man as they paid Everton £75m in July 2017.
Lukaku scored 16 Premier League goals in his first season at Old Trafford but his form dwindled as Jose Mourinho s troubled reign came to an end last time around.
The frontman was unable to sustain a resurgence under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer…
Manchester United rediscovered their X-factor in the resounding 4-0 Europa League win over Real Sociedad, according to boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.
United had won just two of their previous six games across all competitions before Thursday s last-32 first-leg clash in Turin, but they turned on the style against their LaLiga opponents.
Bruno Fernandes scored either side of half-time to take his goal involvement tally in the competition since his debut in February 2018 to 24 (16 goals, eight assists) – more than any other player.
Marcus Rashford and Daniel James then sealed the biggest away victory by an English side against a Spanish opponent in the UEFA Cup/Europa League, surpassing Newcastle United s 3-0 win at Mallorca in 2004.
Absolutel…
Cristiano Ronaldo did not threaten to leave Portugal s World Cup camp due to a disagreement with coach Fernando Santos.
That is according to the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF), after reports emerged that Ronaldo had said he would abandon the squad following Santos decision to drop him to the bench for the round of 16 game against Switzerland.
Portugal went on to win 6-1 on Tuesday, with Ronaldo coming on as a substitute and having a goal disallowed for offside.
In a statement released on Thursday, the FPF insisted there was no issue between the 37-year-old and Santos.
News released this Thursday reports that Ronaldo threatened to leave the national team during a conversation with Fernando Santos, the statement read.
The FPF clarifies that …
Bayern Munich head coach Julian Nagelsmann remains unsure on the progress of Manuel Neuer s contract negotiations but heaped praise on the outstanding goalkeeper.
Neuer has made 300 appearances in the Bundesliga for Bayern since moving from Schalke and holds the record for the most clean sheets in the German top flight (209), having surpassed Oliver Kahn (196) in 2021.
But the Germany international s current contract in Munich expires at the end of the next season, when he will be aged 37, leading to questions over his future.
While Nagelsmann was unable to provide an update on the situation, he insisted that the 35-year-old can continue performing for many years to come.
I don t know [about negotiations] but I know that he still has a contract and is a…