Benayoun attracts Premier League interest

German football legend Franz Roth believes France could be burdened by the pressure of a home crowd at Euro 2016 and backed Germany to go a long way in the tournament.

Roth, who only won four caps for his country but is one of Bayern Munich s most decorated players, also tipped Belgium to impress and pointed to the potential for smaller nations to cause an upset.

Didier Deschamps France team are among the favourites to lift the Henri Delaunay Trophy given their home advantage, but Roth warned: It can be a burden, too.

It s not always a bonus to play at home, he told Omnisport. Germany was perfect – 1974 [when West Germany hosted and won the World Cup] was a bonus and we became world champions. But this doesn t have to be the case every time.

With Fra…

In an interview with the press, Chelsea and Ivory Coast’s striker Didier Drogba outlined how he nearly quit football in 2008.

The reasons he gave were as follows:

The death of this grandmother, with whom he was extremely close. He said that the thoughts of his early childhood played on his mind;

He had to constantly battle against injury;

He had been faced with disciplinary problems; and

There had been question marks over his future at the club.

The thirty-year old striker also said that the club had been unable to offer him much help in overcoming his physical as well as mental problems.

All of this had drained him both physically and mentally as he lost his desire to play. He added that his passion for the game …

Verdict: Atletico Madrid to Win to Nil

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La Liga runners-up Atletico Madrid return to action following the international break with a home clash against relegation-threatened Deportivo La Coruna. Hosts will be looking for much-needed three points that would help them maintain the advantage over third-placed Real Madrid.

Atletico Madrid

The 2017/18 has been the season of ups and downs for Atletico Madrid. Having gone through a stifling transfer ban Los Colchineros were finally able to register new players during the January window and went on to make an additional push towards the top of the La Liga table.

Sitting in second with huge 11 points behind runaway leaders Barcelona, Atletico Madrid will be looking to beat reigning …

Kylian Mbappe was among the scorers as Paris Saint-Germain brushed aside Strasbourg 4-0 in their final Ligue 1 outing of 2020.

The reigning champions were held to a goalless draw by Lille last time out and struggled to find their stride again in Wednesday s clash at the Parc des Princes prior to a late flurry of goals.

Timothee Pembele s first strike for the club in his fifth appearance got PSG off the mark after 18 minutes, but it took until 11 minutes from time for Mbappe to add a second from a few yards out.

Substitutes Idrissa Gueye and Moise Kean then joined the scoring as Thomas Tuchel s men picked up a third league win in seven outings, although they end the year in third place a point behind Lyon and Lille, who both won elsewhere.

The Parisians fi…

Sampdoria are keen to bring confused Liverpool striker Mario Balotelli to the club to revive his career.

Balotelli struggled on loan at AC Milan last season, scoring just three goals in 23 appearances in all competitions.

The 25-year-old is back at Liverpool for pre-season, but the Premier League side are reportedly willing to listen to offers.

Sampdoria president Massimo Ferrero would be open to signing Balotelli, who impressed in the Serie A earlier in his career.

Balotelli is Balotelli s worst enemy, he told Corriere dello Sport.

Like [Antonio] Cassano is Cassano s worst enemy. He s a great player whose been stuck back in the 1960s.

He could relaunch his career at a passionate club like ours, but he s still a bit confused. I ve tried…

Competition: Premier League
Market: Mata to join Everton
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Manchester United playmaker Juan Mata looks on his way out of Old Trafford this summer following the appointment of Jose Mourinho as manager.

The Spanish international was sold by Mourinho at Chelsea in 2014 due to perceived deficiencies in playing style, and if reports are to be believed, Everton are leading the chase for his signature.

Mata struggled for consistency with Manchester United last season, scoring and assisting 11 goals in 34 Premier League starts. He was frequently switched from right-wing and central attacking midfield, but the lack of creative freedom afforded to the players meant Mata was ineffective under former manager Louis van Gaal.

Everton are reportedly ver…

Mark Hughes is preparing to face a hostile reception when he returns to QPR with his Stoke City side in the Premier League on Saturday.

The Welshman suffered a torrid 10 months in charge at Loftus Road during 2012, and left under a cloud following a poor start to the 2012-13 campaign in which QPR failed to win their first 12 matches.

Ahead of his first return to the club since then, the 50-year-old is expecting the home fans to make their feelings known in the capital.

It was a difficult period, he said. It was frustrating, and I will be honest and say that the record in the second season wasn t anywhere good enough.

As a virtue of that I lost my job there. It was a difficult time for me. We were all trying to pull in the same direction. None of us wan…

Eric Dier is set to sign a new five year deal with Tottenham Hotspur, .

The North London outfit are ready to reward the twenty-two year old for his stunning form for both club and country by making him one of the club’s best paid players.

The former Sporting Lisbon man was one of the few players in Roy Hodgson’s England squad to impress at the European Championships while he was a stand-out performers as Spurs just fell short in their Premier League challenge last season.

He moved to White Hart Lane from Sporting in the summer of 2014 and has so far racked up eighty-seven appearances in all competitions, scoring six goals.

He has also won eleven caps for his country and scored his second international goal in the 1-1 draw with Russia in England�…

Inter striker Marko Livaja has admitted he is thinking about leaving the club in the January transfer window.

Livaja, 19, has been given a chance to impress during club’s Europa League campaign and has shown a lot of potential in the process.

Meanwhile, several Serie A sides have expressed their interest in signing the player on a six-month loan in January, and the young Croat reveals he could accept one of those offers.

“For now I think about Inter, but I will talk about my future with club chiefs in due course,” Livaja said at a press conference ahead of the Europa League clash with Neftchi.

Livaja joined Inter from Hajduk Split in 2010 and was handed a first team debut in the Europa League clash against his former club in August 2012.

Th…

AC Milan striker Robinho is likely to move back to Santos during the summer transfer window, according to his father Gilvan de Souza.

The 28-year-old has been linked with a return to the Brazilian side where he started his professional career in 2002, but his father who doubles as his agent was adamant he would finish the season in Italy before moving to South America.

These stories are only rumours he will not move from Milan (in January). I m sure he will go to Santos in the summer, de Souza told UOL Esporte.

Robinho will not leave Milan (in January). He does not want to deceive the fans of other clubs. The Rossoneri have already sold other strikers, so they will not let him leave too.

Robinho joined Milan in 2010, and has appeared 71 times and scor…