Oleksandr Zinchenko criticised Ukraine s mentality and described their behaviour as unacceptable after they lost 1-0 to Austria to take their Euro 2020 hopes out of their hands.
Ukraine needed only a point from their final Group C match to be sure of second place and a last-16 meeting with Italy at Wembley on Saturday.
However, Christoph Baumgartner s first-half goal gave Austria a narrow victory to book a clash with the Azzurri, advancing from the group stage for the first time at a European Championship.
Despite the narrow margin of defeat, the scoreline flattered Ukraine.
Austria had 13 shots before half-time – behind only Italy s 14 versus Turkey in terms of the most in a first half at the tournament so far – along with eight corners.
The…
Borussia Dortmund are reportedly maintaining a firm stance over Jadon Sancho, while Barcelona still want Memphis Depay.
The Sancho transfer saga continues to dominate talk as Manchester United chase the Dortmund star.
But the Bundesliga club are seemingly unmoved.
TOP STORY – DORTMUND ADAMANT SANCHO WILL STAY
Dortmund are adamant Sancho will not be sold this transfer window, according to Sky Sports.
United have continued to be linked with the England international, who scored 17 goals and provided 16 assists in 32 Bundesliga games last season.
However, Dortmund s asking price of £108million (€120m) has reportedly proven to be a stumbling block.
ROUND-UP
Late in the transfer window, there may stil…
“But he’s a confident guy, he comes in on the back of a good run of form with his club. He’s going to be on the field on Tuesday, no question.”
Southgate says Toney’s quality from the penalty spot is “definitely a great asset to have”, as well as highlighting his confidence and sometimes underappreciated all-round game.
“That swagger, that self-belief is crucial – all of the top forward players have it,” the England boss said.
“I think sometimes the quality of his football can be underestimated.
“His passing, his link play. We’re still getting to know all of those strengths because until you work with a player more regularly you don’t know them inside out.
“You look at him being a big guy but he’s not just a target …
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Desperate to find a route back into the Champions League spots, Tottenham will welcome Luton to north London on Saturday afternoon.
Tottenham
Starting with the hosts, heading into March’s international break with a woeful 3-0 drumming at the hands of Fulham, Tottenham missed out on a golden opportunity to break back into the Champions League spots. Opening this weekend’s fixtures sat three points adrift in the top-four chase, Ange Postecoglou’s men should be excited to make a return to home soil here. Gaining plenty of praise under the former Celtic boss, Spurs have won three of their previous four Premier League showdowns in front of their own supporters. Rightfully tipped as a standout contender on Saturday afternoon, Tottenha…
New Hamburg coach Thorsten Fink is confident the team he has taken over are equipped to escape from the Bundesliga relegation zone.
Fink guided FC Basel to successive titles in the Swiss Super League during 2009/10 and 2010/11.
He left to join Hamburg last Thursday, replacing Michael Oenning who was sacked in September.
Caretaker coach Frank Arnesen orchestrated a 2-1 win over Freiburg on Sunday, recording Hamburg s second victory of the league season.
They remain bottom of the table with seven points from nine matches played.
Fink believes the playing squad have what it takes to get out of trouble, and he is relying on the long-term backing of the club hierarchy to transform Hamburg s fortunes on the pitch.
I know that HSV has one phil…
Real Salt Lake boss Jason Kreis has warned his side against complacency ahead of their MLS semi-final second leg against the Seattle Sounders.
RSL head to Seattle for their Western Conference semi full of confidence after their resounding 3-0 victory at Rio Tinto Stadium in Utah on Saturday.
Alvaro Saborio bagged a brace for the 2009 champions who look on track to advance to the Western Conference final, but Kreis is taking nothing for granted and is reluctant to merely protect their lead.
I don t think we are in a position to do that. I m taking nothing for granted and making no assumptions about this game so we will play our strongest line-up possible and hopefully get the result we need, Kreis said.
I think we need to approach it as we would any oth…
Matic s Spirit Still Strong in London
Nemanja Matic’s name is echoing strongly at Chelsea over the past couple of weeks as it becomes apparent that Antonio Conte might have been against his sale to Manchester United. A player who racked up 35 league appearances in Chelsea’s title charge now stands as a proof that there is something rotten at Stamford Bridge.
“Matic knows very well what I think about him. The importance for me about this player, as I repeat he’s a really good player, he’s a really strong player, very important for our team. But sometimes I think you must accept this crazy summer transfer market. Sometimes you must accept different decisions. But I repeat – for sure this is a great loss, a gross loss for us.”, Conte told Sky Sports.
Plain lo…
Chelsea and Manchester City crashed out of the FA Cup at the hands of Bradford City and Middlesbrough on a day of remarkable shocks.
The Premier League s top two sides Chelsea and Manchester City each suffered shock defeats to lower-league opposition on a remarkable day of fourth-round action in the FA Cup.
Jose Mourinho s Chelsea looked set to coast through against League One Bradford City at Stamford Bridge as they opened up a two-goal lead in the first half through Gary Cahill and Ramires.
However, Jonathan Stead replied prior to the interval and a truly sensational turnaround followed as Filipe Morais, Andy Halliday and Mark Yeates all struck late goals to earn Bradford a 4-2 triumph that ranks among the greatest FA Cup shocks.
Chelsea had won the…
Eric Bailly lamented his season-ending knee injury but the Manchester United defender is confident he will return stronger in 2019-20.
A medial knee ligament injury ruled Bailly out of Manchester United s two remaining Premier League fixtures, as well as Ivory Coast s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) campaign.
Bailly hurt his knee in last week s 1-1 draw at home to Chelsea – the 25-year-old s first Premier League start since February.
Linked with a move away from Old Trafford at the end of the season, Bailly opened up on his injury via Instagram.
…
Juan Mata feels that there is no match in England which compares to the stand-out rivalry between Manchester United and Liverpool.
The two great rivals go head-to-head in Saturday s early kick-off at Anfield as the Premier League returns after the international break, with Liverpool hoping to dent their visitors flying start to the season.
United sit joint-top with Manchester City, having picked up 19 points, averaged three goals per game and conceded just twice in seven matches.
But Liverpool – who have 12 points from the same number of games – have been rather more erratic and will be eager give their season the kick-start it needs with victory over Jose Mourinho s men.
Mata has particularly fond memories of the fixture having scored both goals – …