Leicester City defender Ben Chilwell wants to become one of the best left-backs that England has ever had and has set his sights on being Gareth Southgate s first choice in next year s Nations League finals.
The 21-year-old has made five appearances for the Three Lions, four as a member of the starting line-up, and his performances for the Foxes are ensuring he retains a strong claim to the left-back spot in Southgate s team.
Chilwell, who signed a new six-year contract at King Power Stadium in October, has helped Leicester keep clean sheets against Watford, Burnley and Cardiff City in recent weeks and is focussed on maintaining his form until England s European Championship qualifiers in March.
He told Sky Sports of his ambitions to become an England great, …
Olivier Giroud says the decision to join Chelsea was an obvious one when it became clear Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang was to join Arsenal.
Giroud left for Stamford Bridge on the final day of the January transfer window, completing a move reportedly worth £18million.
The Frenchman looked set to become third choice at Arsenal behind Alexandre Lacazette and Aubameyang, who joined the Gunners on the same day.
Giroud had been linked with a switch for much of the month after struggling to oust Lacazette from the starting XI in the first half of the season and he revealed that Borussia Dortmund, Sevilla and Roma were all in the hunt.
However, once Antonio Conte s interest was known, Giroud s mind was made up.
27 – Since his debut in August 2012, Olivier…
With this summer s European Championships coming to an end last weekend, all eyes should turn to a stacked MLS schedule throughout the early hours of Sunday. On that note, for those of you looking to stick on a little flutter, we have found a handful of helpful tips that are worth keeping an eye out for.
Sunday 18th July
BST 00:00 New York Red Bulls vs Inter Miami
Starting with this weekend s hosts, despite putting in what was a hugely impressive display at home against Philadelphia last time out, there is no doubt that New York would have been disappointed to have had to settle for a point. Watching The Union snatch a last-gasp equalizer, Gerhard Struber s side should be smelling a golden chance to make an immediate return to winning ways on Sunday. While o…
Verdict: Over three goals
Best Odds:
Bookmaker:
The first Premier League match of gameweek 22 brings us a London derby in the east of the city as West Ham host Arsenal.
West Ham
Starting with Saturday s hosts, after picking up a morale-boosting 2-0 win over Birmingham and booking their spot in the fourth round of the FA Cup last weekend, the Hammers will have one eye on securing European football this season. Now losing just one of their last four matches across all competitions, former Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini will be most impressed by his sides form at the London Stadium. West Ham have lost just one of their last five matches in East London, scoring two or more in four of those outings. While it has been heavily reported that leading…
N Golo Kante is a fundamental part of France s team because of the character he shows on the pitch, according to international team-mate Lucas Hernandez.
Kante was an unused substitute as France battled to a 2-2 friendly draw at home to Iceland on Thursday and his absence was notable, as the world champions struggled to effectively nullify the visitors in midfield.
Kylian Mbappe eventually inspired a late comeback after being 2-0 down, as the Paris Saint-Germain star forced a Holmar Eyjolfsson own goal and scored a late penalty.
Kante is expected to come straight back into the starting XI for the visit of Germany in the Nations League on Tuesday, and Lucas is confident he will make a difference.
The character he shows on the pitch, the desire he has –…
Harry Kane offers more to England than simply goals, says Kieran Trippier, who is not concerned about the striker s lack of touches in Sunday s 1-0 win over Serbia.
Jude Bellingham s goal was the difference as England recorded a hard-fought victory to open their Group C campaign, meaning they have started all four of their major tournaments under Gareth Southgate with a win.
However, their performance attracted criticism from some quarters as England managed just five shots to Serbia s six, accumulating a total of 0.52 expected goals (xG).
Kane was a victim of the cagey nature of the contest, recording fewer touches (24) and successful passes (nine) than any other England starter.
Goalkeeper Jordan Pickford at least doubled both of those tallies, having…
Jurgen Klopp is expecting both Thiago Alcantara and Fabinho to be fit to feature for Liverpool in Saturday s Champions League final against Real Madrid.
The two key midfielders were doubts for the Reds heading to Paris this week.
Thiago hobbled out of the final match of the Premier League season against Wolves with a calf injury, while a hamstring complaint means Fabinho has not played since the win at Aston Villa on May 10.
However, Klopp offered a positive update in his pre-match news conference on Friday.
The mood is good, very good, the Liverpool manager said. We re really excited about being here now, getting a feeling of the stadium, the location. That s all good.
It looks good for both Thiago and Fabinho. Fabinho trained completely normal…
The first clash between two of the four teams many see as the most serious contenders for the Premier League title took place on Saturday at Anfield, as Liverpool and Chelsea shared the spoils. Kai Havertz produced a fine header from a Reece James corner to break the deadlock in the 22nd minute, and Mohamed Salah equalized from the penalty spot in the final moments of the first half, after James earned a red card for handling the ball on the goal-line.
Van Dijk or Lukaku?
Looking ahead to this match, most media in England focused on the battles between Virgil van Dijk and Romelu Lukaku. The Belgian striker is back in the English top flight, widely (and rightly) considered as one of the best in the world in his position, while the Dutch centre-back returned at the start of the …
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers insists his side will not be tourists on their return to the UEFA Champions League.
The five-time winners will take part in Europe s elite club competition for the first time since the 2009-10 season, and begin with the visit of Ludogorets on Tuesday.
Rodgers, whose side also share Group B with Real Madrid and Basel, says Liverpool are ready for the challenge.
We are not tourists in this competition we believe it is where we belong and where we should be playing, he said. For the players and everyone involved it s something that brings the real excitement, but it isn t a giddy excitement.
“We are Liverpool, we are five times winners of the European Cup and we are synonymous with its best traditions. Our players are exc…
Former Brighton and Hove Albion midfielder Enock Mwepu has been discharged from a specialist heart hospital in his native Zambia.
Mwepu was forced to retire from playing in October after being diagnosed with a hereditary heart condition.
Amid reports the ex-Zambia international had suffered a heart attack at the weekend, Brighton released a statement confirming he was undergoing precautionary checks .
The 25-year-old has now been released from Lusaka Heart Hospital after a four-day admission and will continue his recuperation at home.
When announcing his retirement three months ago, Brighton said Mwepu was at an extremely high risk of suffering a potentially fatal cardiac event if he continued playing.
He has since taken on a role as academy coach…