Fekir to Liverpool ‘99% done’

According to French television Canal+, the transfer of Lyon’s Nabil Fekir to is 99% done.

In the last round of the 2017/18 Ligue 1 season, Lyon beat Nice by 3-2. Fekir was substituted in the 84th minute, and the moment was clearly very emotional for the attacking midfielder as his gestures towards his teammates and the faithful fans looked like he was saying goodbye.

The France international, recently in their World Cup squad, has been linked with a move to Anfield for a while. It is believed the transfer would cost Liverpool €60million, which should not represent a problem for Jürgen Klopp who still has the full €160million from the sale of Philippe Coutinho at his disposal.

The Reds are still likely to lose Emre Can on a free transfer this summer, but…

Premier League Review: West Ham sack Pellegrini after Leicester defeat, Man Utd up to fifth

West Ham sacked Manuel Pellegrini following a 2-1 home defeat to a much-changed Leicester City side before Manchester United won at Burnley on Saturday. 

Pellegrini was relieved of his duties following a loss that leaves the London club just a point above the Premier League relegation zone in 17th.

Leicester were thumped 4-0 by runaway leaders Liverpool on Boxing Day after suffering a 3-1 defeat to Manchester City, but got back on track in the capital despite Brendan Rodgers making nine changes – leading scorer Jamie Vardy absent after his wife gave birth.

Goals from Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford gave United a 2-0 win at Turf Moor, where they kept a first clean sheet in 15 league games.

Jose Mourinho s Spurs needed Harry Kane s 83rd-minute pe…

German keeper Enke to undergo more tests on mystery virus

Germany goalkeeper Robert Enke is to undergo more tests to identify the virus that has prevented him from training for the last week, according to his club Hanover.

Blood tests carried out by the Hamburg institute of tropical diseases confirmed that it was not a contagious disease, the club said.

Other tests are needed to determine the proper treatment, it said, adding that Enke should be able to resume individual training quickly.

Second-choice keeper behind Jens Lehmann during Euro 2008, Enke has won eight caps for Germany but had to pull out of the squad that beat Azerbaijan in last week s World Cup qualifier because of the virus.

English clubs plan ´twinning´ in Asia

The English Premier League plans to help develop professional football clubs in Asia through twinning partnerships, AFC president Mohammed bin Hammam said here Friday.

The twinning scheme is part of an agreement on cooperation between the world s leading football league and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), bin Hammam told a small group of reporters.

He said the Premier League had already been engaged in various developmental and social assistance programmes at home and abroad, especially in Asia.

Now the top-flight 20-club league has come forward to support the AFC in technical, organisational and other areas and we are counting a lot on their support, he said.

There could be or would be twinning between our clubs in Asia and Premier League c…

Heldt: No new offers for Draxler

Schalke sporting director Horst Heldt said there have been no new offers for Julian Draxler, though the midfielder could still be sold, amid interest from Juventus.

Serie A champions Juventus lodged a bid for Germany international Draxler, which was swiftly rejected by Schalke last month.

Juve remain interested in the 21-year-old, but Heldt has no plans to part with the club s prized asset on the cheap.

We received an offer for Draxler, which we rejected. That s out in the open, Heldt said ahead of Schalke s Bundesliga opener at Werder Bremen on Saturday.

We haven t received a new offer, as has been written in the Italian media.

We have a verbal agreement with Julian, which we made when we extended his contract in 2013, so I can t rule anything…

Montpellier v Paris Saint-Germain: French champions seek to avoid repeat of upset

​Paris Saint-Germain visit Montpellier on Monday out to avoid a repeat of last season s shock Coupe de France loss to their Ligue 1 rivals.

The French top-flight champions were knocked out by Montpellier in the round of 32 last season courtesy of a 2-1 defeat at the Parc des Princes, which at the time marked PSG s first home reverse since November 2012.

Laurent Blanc s side missed the chance to avenge that setback in their final Ligue 1 fixture before the mid-season break, producing a frustrating performance in a 0-0 draw that saw PSG fall to third, three points behind leaders and arch rivals Marseille.

The home supporters made no secret of their discontent at the end of that encounter, booing PSG from the field, and Blanc will be keen for his side to bounce …

Lovable Peru gain more admirers in face of defeat

If you weren t a Peru fan before, you probably are now.

Saturday s opening 1-0 loss to Denmark in Group C at the World Cup was cruel, but epitomised why Peru are universally loved on and off the pitch.

Christian Cueva blazed a penalty horribly over the crossbar on the stroke of half-time, leaving the Peruvian on the verge of tears as his team-mates rallied around him and while Denmark made the South Americans pay via Yussuf Poulsen, their fans support never waned.

Back in the World Cup for the first time in 36 years, Peru have invaded Russia – seas of red and white taking over Moscow and Saransk – the venue for Saturday s Group C opener 630 kilometres east of the capital.

Momentos de nuestro Himno Nacional en la .

¡Vamos Perú!

—…

Lucas signs new five-year Tottenham contract

Lucas Moura has extended his Tottenham contract through to 2024, the Premier League club have announced.

The Brazilian attacker inked a 12-month extension to his existing deal on the eve of the club s Premier League season opener at home to Aston Villa.

Lucas joined Spurs from Paris Saint-Germain in January 2018 and the London outfit have seen fit to reward him with fresh terms following his starring role in the run to last season s Champions League final.

An exceptional second-half hat-trick inspired a remarkable second-leg comeback against Ajax in the semi-finals as the 26-year-old finished an impressive European campaign with five goals from 12 appearances.

He also notched 10 times in the Premier League, having occasionally filled in at centre-forward …

Bitesize Prediction: Lincoln vs Burton – 25/04/23

Market: Lincoln win

Odds: 6/5 @

Looking to extend on their League One purple patch in midweek, Lincoln will welcome Burton to Sincil Bank on Tuesday night.

Starting with the hosts, while Lincoln might have long since accepted that they will not be snatching a shock play-off spot this season, the Imps are enjoying what has been a stellar run of form. Last seen over the weekend putting in another eye-catching display as they secured a 2-0 victory away at Wycombe, Mark Kennedy’s side are riding what has become a remarkable wave of momentum. With their sights now firmly set on picking up a top-half finish in 2023, the former Macclesfield boss finds his side enjoying a six-match unbeaten run over the past month. With their recent purple patch highlighted by a 2-0 w…

Granada 1-2 Atletico Madrid: Correa´s slice of luck gets LaLiga leaders back on track

Atletico Madrid got their LaLiga title tilt back on track as Angel Correa s fortunate goal secured a hard-fought 2-1 win over Granada.

Diego Simeone s team saw an eight-match winning streak in the league come to an end when they were pegged back by Celta Vigo on Monday.

Real Madrid and Barcelona looked to be getting another favour when Granada substitute Yangel Herrera cancelled out Marcos Llorente s 63rd-minute opener on Saturday.

The unusually profligate Luis Suarez had gone close to breaking the deadlock numerous times, hitting the crossbar and finding Rui Silva in fine form, but a fifth successive away win seemed set to evade Atleti.

However, a huge slice of luck went Atleti s way when Correa s strike deflected in off Jesus Vallejo to settle the conte…