The Asian Champions League campaign is expected to be Robbie Kruse s farewell to Melbourne Victory, with the striker set to move to Germany.

German newspaper Bild has said a deal for Kruse s services is as good as done with a move to Bundesliga II club Fortuna Dusseldorf in the European summer set to be finalised.

Kruse s manager John Grimaud has strong contacts in Germany and secured a dream deal for another promising Victory youngster, goalkeeper Mitchell Langerak, to current Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund 12 months ago.

Kruse s contract with the A-League club expires after the Asian Champions League group stages which begin for Victory on March 1 against Japanese club Gamba Osaka upon which time the club appear resigned to his departure.

Kruse i…

Cesc Fabregas, Carles Puyol and Pedro Rodriguez have withdrawn from Spain s Euro 2012 qualifiers against the Czech Republic and Lithuania.

Spain host the Czech Republic in Grenada on Saturday before travelling to Kaunas four days later to face Lithuania, and will be hoping to maintain their unbeaten run in the qualifying rounds.But the reigning world and European champions will need to do so without the services of Arsenal talisman Fabregas and Barcelona duo Puyol and Pedro, all of whom are unavailable due to injury.Spain coach Vincente del Bosque has called up Valencia winger Juan Mata along with Athletic Bilbao team-mates Andoni Iraola and Javi Martinez as cover.World Cup winners Mata and Martinez return to the national side after missing Spain s friendly against Colombia las…

Julian Nagelsmann has become the youngest head coach in Bundesliga history after beginning his tenure at Hoffenheim earlier than planned.

The 28-year-old agreed a three-year contract last October to take the reins from the start of the 2016-17 campaign, with veteran Dutch coach Huub Stevens installed on a short-term deal at the same time

But Stevens resigned on Wednesday due to a heart condition, meaning Nagelsmann will be in charge for the crunch relegation clash against Werder Bremen on Sunday.

Hoffenheim lie second bottom of the Bundesliga having won only two matches all season. They are seven points from outright safety and five behind Werder, who currently languish 16th in the relegation play-off spot.

Official! 28-year-old Julian takes over as he…

Juventus have announced Roberto Pereyra has signed a new contract that will keep him at the club until 2020, while Simone Padoin has agreed a new deal until June 2017.

Pereyra joined Juve from Udinese in July 2014 on an initial one-year loan deal, before the Serie A champions made the Argentina international s stay permanent in June 2015.

The versatile midfielder has developed into an important first-team member over the past 18 months and Juventus have now rewarded him with a new and improved deal.

The 25-year-old s previous contract ran until 2019, but he has now inked a one-year extension.

Pereyra, who recently returned to the pitch after shrugging of a muscular problem, has made 11 appearances in all competitions this campaign.

Padoin, meanw…

Arsenal have joined the race to sign Southampton defender Virgil van Dijk, according to the Express.

The centre-back has been strongly linked with a move away from St Mary’s Stadium this summer with a whole host of clubs interested in securing his services.

Liverpool remain in the hunt, while Chelsea and Manchester City have also thrown their hat into the ring though Arsene Wenger is keen to steal a march on his rivals as he looks to assemble a squad capable of finishing back in the top four following last season’s disappointment.

Van Dijk has played sixty-eight times in all competitions since signing for the Saints from Celtic in the summer of 2015, scoring for them seven times.

During his time in Scotland the twenty-six year old won back to bac…

Nuno Espirito Santo has returned to Porto as the club s new head coach on a two-year deal.

The 42-year-old former goalkeeper represented the Portuguese giants during his playing days, earning four Primeira Liga titles and the 2004 Champions League during two spells at the club.

Nuno subsequently turned his hand to coaching and built a fine reputation having led Rio Ave to the Taca de Portugal and Taca da Liga finals in the 2013-14 season and was snapped up by Valencia.

During his first season, Nuno led Valencia back to the Champions League, but the team struggled during his second campaign and he resigned as head coach in November.

Porto subsequently confirmed that Nuno has returned to the club on their official website, with the team having endured a d…

Luis Suarez will have to wait for his full Atletico Madrid debut after the former Barcelona striker was named on the bench for Sunday s clash with Granada.

Uruguay star Suarez completed a €6million move to Atleti on Friday, after being deemed surplus to requirements by Barca.

New Barca boss Ronald Koeman revealed in his news conference on Saturday that, while he planned to discard Suarez anyway, the decision to sell the former Liverpool star had already been made before he arrived at Camp Nou, much to Lionel Messi s chagrin.

Diego Simeone was full of praise for his latest addition in the build-up to Atleti s home game against Granada, confirming the 33-year-old would be involved, though he did not reveal if Suarez would start.

Ultimately, the striker ha…

Aitor Karanka has left his role as manager of Nottingham Forest after the club agreed to release him from his contract.

Speculation has been building over recent weeks that the Spaniard s days at the City Ground were numbered, amid rumours of a major fall-out with the club s hierarchy.

Karanka was appointed in January last year, having been sacked by Middlesbrough in March 2017 with the club heading for relegation from the Premier League.

His last game in charge of Forest was Saturday s 2-0 FA Cup third-round defeat at Chelsea. His most recent Championship outing was an impressive 4-2 defeat of leaders Leeds United on New Year s Day, a triumph which ended a five-match winless run and leaves Forest just one place and four points outside the play-offs.

Ai…

The great Arrigo Sacchi is in awe of genius Luciano Spalletti s Napoli team, comparing them to his Milan side and Pep Guardiola s Barcelona.

Sacchi s Rossoneri were widely considered one of the greatest club teams of all time, but the coach sees similarities in Napoli s class of 2022-23.

The Partenopei are unbeaten through 12 matches in Serie A, opening up a five-point gap at the top already as they chase a first Scudetto since Diego Maradona s time at the club.

In the Champions League, Napoli have five wins from five, including remarkable 4-1 and 6-1 defeats of Liverpool and Ajax respectively.

Sacchi, in an interview with Il Mattino, suggested a run to the semi-finals should be the minimum goal for this season, while he is backing them for domestic succe…

Tim Leiweke, president of AEG, the company which owns LA Galaxy, believes that David Beckham will not leave the club in January.

Beckham has been strongly linked with returning to Europe in the winter transfer window as his MLS contract with LA Galaxy runs out next month.

Paris Saint-Germain have expressed an interest in the 36-year-old, while a move back to the Premier League with QPR has been mooted as another possibility.

However, Leiweke is confident Beckham will extend his stay at the club.

I think David is loyal to us, Leiweke told Sports Illustrated.

Despite all the rumours and bulls out there about David going to France or the Premier League, David only leaves the Galaxy if David and we decide that.

In fact, I believe David wi…