Raheem Sterling missed England s World Cup last-16 match against Senegal after travelling home following a raid by armed intruders on his home, Stats Perform understands.
The Chelsea forward was absent from Gareth Southgate s squad for the 3-0 win over the Africa Cup of Nations champions on Sunday.
England officials put it down to a family matter before kick-off, and it remains to be seen whether Sterling travels back to Qatar in time to feature in the quarter-final against France next Saturday.
The BBC reported the break-in at Sterling s London area home occurred on Saturday night.
Manager Gareth Southgate said after England s victory: Raheem is having to deal with a family situation. He s going back to England. We have to give him time to try to resolve…
Real Madrid director of football Zinedine Zidane has suggested Tottenham will only sell Gareth Bale for a record-breaking transfer fee.
The Welshman enjoyed an outstanding 2012-13 Premier League campaign, scoring 21 goals in 33 appearances as Spurs narrowly fell short of UEFA Champions League qualification.
That form has seen the 23-year-old strongly linked with a move away from White Hart Lane, with Real thought to be favourites for his signature should he opt to depart.
However, Zidane believes Bale s price could potentially surpass the 93 million euros Manchester United banked when selling Cristiano Ronaldo to the Bernabeu outfit in 2009.
The talk about Gareth Bale is not a surprise, said the 40-year-old Frenchman. It is impossible to have the season he just had and not be l…
Italian champions Juventus have set their sights on no fewer than three Paris Saint-Germain footballers, .
It is no secret that the Bianconeri are hot on the trail of Edinson Cavani, who is almost certain to return to Italy if his move to Chelsea fails to materialise.
The Uruguayan is eager to leave the Saints in search of first team football, and Juventus have emerged as one of the favourites for his signature.
At the same time, the Bianconeri have rekindled their interest in Javier Pastore, after missing out on his signature in the summer of 2011 as he decided to join PSG instead.
Juventus are also determined to lure Adrien Rabiot to Turin as well, having failed to persuade him to join in the fall of 2014.
After winning 20 of last 21 league fix…
Dani Alves has apologised to Pep Guardiola and Manchester City for sensationally snubbing the Premier League club, but claims he has joined Paris Saint-Germain to be a champion .
Alves had been expected to link up with his former Barcelona coach Guardiola at the Eithad Stadium after securing an early release from his Juventus contract.
Instead, the 34-year-old was presented in the French capital on Wednesday, having opted to join PSG, who finished second behind Monaco in Ligue 1 last season and lost 6-5 to Barca in a thrilling Champions League round-of-16 tie.
If Pep Guardiola and Manchester City feel hurt, I am sorry I have come here to be a champion, Alves told a news conference.
Alves also risked incurring the wrath of his former team, claiming a…
Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino has revealed his ambition to coach the England national team in the future.
Pochettino, who has led Spurs to top-three finishes in the Premier League in each of the last two campaigns, has been working in English football since 2013.
And the Argentinian, formerly in charge of Southampton, has stated that managing at international level is one of his career goals, with England squads in recent years featuring several faces to have worked under Pochettino.
If I were to be an international manager one day, I d relish the opportunity to coach the England national team, Pochettino says in new book A Brave New World , serialised in the Daily Mail.
I ve heard that I ve been considered for the job before, but I don t know if t…
Divock Origi believes he has returned to Liverpool as a more mature player following his loan spell at Wolfsburg.
The forward was part of Belgium’s squad at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, scoring the winner for his country in the 1-0 triumph over Russia in the group stage, but failed to make the cut for this year’s tournament following an indifferent campaign in Germany.
Origi netted six Bundesliga goals and also scored in the two-legged relegation play-off victory over Holstein Kiel, helping Wolfsburg maintain their top-flight status.
While failing to find his best form during the 2017-18 season, Origi insists his temporary stint overseas has made him a more complete frontman as he aims to prove his worth at Anfield.
It was a learning season for me…
There has been plenty of talk about over the past couple of months and especially during the summer transfer window.
The 25-year-old Brazilian did not let the intense talk about his possible move to Barcelona disrupt his mental balance as he headed into the 2017/18 season in red-hot form – once again proving he is the ultimate leader of his side.
Undeserved Criticism
Having arrived for paltry £8.5 million from Inter Milan back in 2013, Coutinho has evolved into a world-class midfielder, establishing himself as one of the planet’s best playmakers. It can come as little surprise to see a club such as Barcelona would come knocking on Liverpool’s door but it surely can come as little surprise to see a player such as Coutinho being tempted by a prospect of playing …
Thomas Tuchel has revealed he explained to Conor Gallagher in person why Chelsea could not allow the on-loan Crystal Palace midfielder to play in their FA Cup semi-final.
Chelsea meet Palace in the last four of the competition at Wembley on Sunday, but breakout star Gallagher will be merely a spectator.
The England international belongs to Chelsea but is yet to make a senior appearance for the club, instead establishing himself as a top Premier League midfielder for Palace this season.
Gallagher has scored eight goals and provided five assists in all competitions in 2021-22, including two assists in four FA Cup matches prior to the semis.
That sort of form shows why Chelsea could not accommodate Palace s request to allow him to play this weekend. The Blue…
Best Odds: 11/8
Bookmaker:
Looking to do the double over Belgium on foreign soil this weekend, England will make the trip out to Heverlee on Sunday night.
Belgium
Starting with the hosts, despite making a string of alterations earlier in the week, Belgium did manage to secure a 2-1 win against Switzerland on home soil and the Red Devils will be desperate to keep up that momentum. Looking to fully bounce back from their shock defeat away at Wembley last month, Roberto Martinez s men still hold their #1 ranking with FIFA and have managed to hang onto their spot at the top of League A Group 2. Last seen on Nations League duties picking up what was a hard-fought 2-1 win against Iceland on foreign soil, the one-time Wigan boss also sees his side continuing on what h…
Erik ten Hag says the challenge of getting Manchester United back on track is a difficult but fantastic one as the Dutchman prepares to take over at Old Trafford.
United confirmed last month that Ajax head coach Ten Hag will replace interim manager Ralf Rangnick at the end of the 2021-22 campaign.
The Red Devils have gone five seasons without winning any silverware and will finish this campaign with their lowest ever Premier League points tally.
Ten Hag will be tasked with bringing an end to that barren spell, while also guiding United back into the top four at the very least.
He told Voetbal International: It feels like a challenge to put the club back on track of winning. The options are there, including financially.
I ve also got a good feeli…