Germany head coach Hansi Flick said the omission of Mats Hummels from his World Cup squad is with a view to the future .
The Borussia Dortmund defender has not represented the national side since 2021 but was a candidate for a return after impressive performances at club level this season.
However, Flick opted against bringing the 33-year-old back into the fold and instead handed a spot to Southampton s 20-year-old Armel Bella-Kotchap and Hummels 22-year-old Dortmund team-mate Nico Schlotterbeck.
With the pair facing a stern battle for minutes, and Antonio Rudiger and Niklas Sule for competition, Flick s selection sees him cast an eye to the future.
We thought about how to put together the squad. We watched a lot of his games, he has excellent form, is i…
At their Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in North London on Saturday, Spurs handed Everton a proper thrashing in the second round of the Premier League season.
The deadlock was broken in the 14th minute when Yves Bissouma slammed into the top corner from outside the box, and in the 25th, Son Heung-min took advantage of a serious blunder by England No.1 Jordan Pickford to double his team s lead. Cristian Romero made it three in the 71st, and Son doubled his personal tally on the night in the 77th, setting the final score to 4-0.
The teams
Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou set up his starting lineup in an extremely attacking 4-3-3 shape, with both James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski deployed in advanced midfield roles, just behind the front line of Brennan Johnson, Son, and new sign…
David Moyes admitted he would have been “disgusted” with himself as a player if he had made some of the mistakes West Ham made against Brentford.
The Hammers’ Brentford curse struck again after Nathan Collins condemned them to a 3-2 defeat on an unlikely afternoon of firsts in west London.
Defender Collins scored his first goal for the club after Jarrod Bowen became the first player in Premier League history to score in each of his side’s first six away matches.
There was also a first goal in 35 matches, and 14 months, for Brentford forward Neal Maupay.
Unfortunately for West Ham, it was a first Premier League win – or even point – against the Bees which eluded them. Thomas Frank’s side have the hoodoo over the Hammers having won all five me…
Best Odds: 3/4
Bookmaker:
Seeking what is a much-needed boost on Wednesday evening, a struggling Juventus will welcome Lecce to Turin.
Juventus
Starting with the hosts, while Juventus might have seen their 15-point deduction temporarily overturned last month, the Italian heavyweights are in the midst of an extended rut. Although Massimiliano Allegri’s might have eventually punched their Europa League semi-final ticket on April 20th as they claimed a nail-bitting 2-1 aggregate victory against Sporting Lisbon, the Old Lady have remarkably claimed just a single victory from any of their last eight straight appearances across all competitions a run that stems all the way back to April 1st. Last seen putting in another downbeat display as they had to settle for a …
Jupp Heynckes praised great professionals Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben after the veteran wingers helped Bayern Munich seal a sixth successive Bundesliga title.
Robben scored his side s third goal in a 4-1 win away at Augsburg on Saturday that wrapped up the league with seven games still to play.
Heynckes withdrew the Dutchman – who is out of contract at the end of the season – after 83 minutes, allowing the 34-year-old to receive a rousing ovation from the travelling supporters.
Substitute Ribery had arrived off the bench just prior to the departure of his long-time team-mate, with the Frenchman celebrating his 35th birthday in style in what could yet be his final campaign with the club.
It was an act of recognition on my part, because thes…
Juventus have given positive fitness updates on Manuel Locatelli and Alex Sandro.
The pair were substituted in Saturday’s 2-1 Serie A win at Frosinone after picking up injuries.
A Juventus statement read: “After the knock picked up in yesterday’s match against Frosinone, Manuel Locatelli underwent tests this morning at the J|Medical centre that ruled out any fracture and confirmed an oblique contusion.
Medical update on Alex Sandro and Locatelli
— JuventusFC (@juventusfcen)
“For Alex Sandro, meanwhile, an MRI scan on his right thigh ruled out muscular injuries and indicated a hamstring overload.
“Their condition will be assessed from day to day.”
Locatelli suffered a fractured rib that ruled him out of international…
With the New Year fast approaching this weekend, the Championship offers a host of eye-catching affairs on Friday night.
As the likes of Southampton and Leicester look to extend on their respective promotion charges, we have found a pair of intriguing Championship betting markets that are available.
18:00 Southampton vs Plymouth
Although Southampton might have found themselves at the heart of a real Championship struggle back in September, Russell Martin’s men have come roaring back in some style. Skyrocketing their way up the table and now tipped as a runaway contender to claim a play-off ticket in the New Year, Friday’s hosts have certainly gained plenty of plaudits for their attacking approach.
Putting in a stunning performance on Boxing Day as …
Mauricio Pochettino has not given up on winning Ligue 1, but conceded Paris Saint-Germain got no less than they deserved against Rennes as their title hopes took a hit following a 1-1 draw.
Neymar celebrated his new four-year deal with PSG by scoring a contentious penalty to put Pochettino s team ahead on Sunday, only for Serhou Guirassy s fine header to seal a point for Rennes.
PSG were in fact lucky not to lose, with Presnel Kimpembe seeing red late on and Keylor Navas pulling out some impressive saves to keep it at 1-1.
The draw leaves PSG three points behind Lille with two games remaining – no team has ever been crowned Ligue 1 champions with such a gap at this stage – and the title may well be wrapped up next week should the capital club drop points ag…
Pep Guardiola thanked his Manchester City players for sticking with him after a vital Premier League comeback win at home to Leicester City.
Guardiola s preparations for Saturday s clash at the Etihad Stadium were disrupted by the departure of his assistant Mikel Arteta, who left the club to take charge at Arsenal.
Arteta was part of the backroom staff that has led City to two highly impressive Premier League title successes but they won 3-1 against the Foxes in their first game without the 37-year-old.
Riyad Mahrez struck against his old club to cancel out Jamie Vardy s opener with Ilkay Gundogan s penalty and a close-range Gabriel Jesus finish wrapping up a fourth straight win in all competitions.
Guardiola, who has confirmed he will not immediately see…
Lionel Messi and Ansu Fati led the way for Barcelona as Quique Setien s men did just enough to claim a 2-1 win over Levante at Camp Nou on Sunday, moving them back to within three points of leaders Real Madrid.
After a remarkable breakthrough at the start of the season, Fati had recently come in for criticism amid some underwhelming displays, but he showed just how effective he can be as Messi carved open the Levante defence.
Fati took his top-flight tally to four with a pair of strikes separated by just 102 seconds in the first half, profiting from the brilliance of Messi on both occasions to become the youngest player to score a LaLiga brace this century.
Levante offered a lot more from an attacking perspective after the break and deservedly pulled one back…