Leonardo Bonucci has no doubt Italy will recover from their World Cup qualifying humiliation to be a major power once again, pointing out they produced a similar response not so long ago.
Italy were incredibly defeated 1-0 by North Macedonia in Thursday s Qatar 2022 qualifying play-off semi-final, with Aleksandar Trajkovski s stoppage-time winner stunning world football.
Roberto Mancini s men had dominated the match, but Trajkovski s speculative long-range effort left Azzurri players and coaching staff looking dismayed.
It marked a monumental change in fortunes from last year when a largely unfancied Italy side won Euro 2020, which was seen a huge achievement given their absence from Russia 2018.
As such, this will be the first time in World Cup history …
According to a recent report from Calciomercato, Lazio star Sergej Milinkovic-Savic is on the verge of finally agreeing to a new five-year contract with the club. The midfielder was heavily linked with a switch to both Manchester United and Juventus during the recent summer transfer window, but neither club was able to get a deal over the finish line. Milinkovic-Savic has been a constant force in the middle of the park for Lazio for a while now, and it appears as if the Italian giants will succeed in their mission to keep him on the books for the foreseeable future.
The 24 year old Serbian first joined Lazio back in 2015 from Genk, and has made well over 100 appearances for the club. He has also been representing his country at the national team level since back in 2017, which …
Soon-to-be free agent Stephan Lichtsteiner revealed he will leave Italian champions Juventus and the Serie A as the Swiss full-back seeks a new challenge.
Lichtsteiner – out of contract in June – has won six successive Serie A titles since arriving from Lazio in 2011 and the 34-year-old is on the cusp of a seventh following Saturday s 3-1 victory over Bologna.
After Juventus moved seven points clear of Scudetto rivals Napoli – who are due to play Torino Sunday – Lichtsteiner told reporters: These are my last 14 days at Juventus. I need new challenges and motivation.
I have improved in my mentality. I didn t know what it meant to play at Juventus when I arrived, as there is pressure and obsession for the victory, Lichtsteiner – who could add a fifth Co…
Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren has prioritised a move to Serie A side Roma, according to agent Alessandro Lucci.
The Croatia international has not been used by Liverpool this season and was left out of the squad entirely for the Premier League opener against Norwich City and the UEFA Super Cup clash versus Chelsea.
Roma were considered the favourites to sign Lovren, only for a deal to reportedly collapse as the sides were unable to agree a fee.
However, Lucci suggested there is still hope of a move going through before the Serie A transfer window closes.
Salah v Lovren
Looks like things got competitive
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague)
Lovren is very open to joining Roma and I think that s obvious, seeing as we are …
It was perhaps fitting that a World Cup campaign that started under a storm cloud finished in identical fashion.
The rain hammered the turf at the Luzhniki Stadium and Spain wilted under the deluge.
As in every penalty shoot-out there has to be heroes and villains, or victims depending on your levels of compassion.
Igor Akinfeev was the former, twice diving to his right to pull off saves, to leave Koke and Iago Aspas with a memory they will be reminded of for the rest of their days.
That it got as far as spot-kicks was a mystery even Scooby Doo would have struggled to solve.
It s going to be quite the Sunday night in Moscow!
— FIFA World Cup (@FIFAWorldCup)
It wasn t so much backs to the walls from Russia, they were through i…
Chelsea have announced the signing of Eduardo from Dinamo Zagreb, the Portugal international signing a one-year deal at Stamford Bridge.
The 33-year-old had been heavily linked with a transfer to Antonio Conte s side and confirmed on Wednesday that he would be leaving Dinamo after helping the club to qualify for the group stage of the Champions League.
His move to England has now been confirmed, giving Conte another senior goalkeeping option to compete with Thibaut Courtois and Asmir Begovic.
Having the opportunity to come to the Premier League and to Chelsea, to such a big club, it is an easy decision to make, said Eduardo.
For me this is the best and the most difficult league and it is another level from where I have been until now. So it is a new cha…
Wilfried Zaha has always dreamed of playing for Arsenal, according to his brother, who has pleaded with Crystal Palace to agree a deal with the Gunners.
Reports on Monday suggested Arsenal had lodged a bid of £40million for Zaha – half of Palace s rumoured £80m valuation for the 26-year-old, who has four years left to run on his deal at Selhurst Park.
As speculation began to circulate on Monday, Zaha – who netted 10 goals in the Premier League last term – scored in Ivory Coast s 4-1 Africa Cup of Nations win over Namibia.
Meanwhile, his brother Judicael urged Palace to cut a deal with Arsenal.
Wilfried will always hold Crystal Palace and their fans in the highest regard and all the support they ve given means the world to him, Judicael told Sky …
Emile Smith Rowe and Matteo Guendouzi scored their first competitive Arsenal goals as the Gunners resisted heavy pressure and claimed a 3-0 win at Qarabag in the Europa League.
Smith Rowe s second-half goal made him the club s youngest goalscorer since Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain netted in September 2011 to cap off a mature performance, and the Gunners extended their winning run to eight matches as Guendouzi finished Qarabag off.
Sokratis Papastathopoulos gave Arsenal a somewhat fortuitous early opener, though the first half finished with Qarabag well on top and only the heroics of Bernd Leno kept the visitors ahead.
But Smith Rowe eased Arsenal s worries early in the second half and, although the hosts remained a potent threat, they were seen off by the Gunners, …
Bukayo Saka savoured a “really special” start to the World Cup after scoring twice in England’s 6-2 thrashing of Iran on Monday.
The Three Lions came into the tournament without a win in six matches, leading to them being consigned to relegation in the Nations League.
But an emphatic Group B victory at Khalifa International Stadium on Monday got them off to a dream start, with Saka on target in each half as Iran were outclassed.
Jude Bellingham, Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford and Jack Grealish also got on the scoresheet as Gareth Southgate picked up his ninth major tournament victory as England manager, surpassing Alf Ramsey s total.
Saka s stunning display comes after a disappointing end to his Euro 2020 campaign, when he missed a penalty in the …
Prediction: Juventus to win 3-0
Best Odds:
Bookmaker:
Juventus and Como will face each other in Serie A next week. The match between Thiago Motta’a side and Cesc Fàbregas’s team will be held at Juventus Stadium and is scheduled to kick off at 7:45 pm UK time next Monday.
Juventus
Juventus are one of the biggest and most historic clubs in Italy. The Bianconeri have won the Scudetto as many as 36 times in their history. Juventus have also clinched the Coppa Italian on 15 occasions and the European Cup/UEFA Champions League twice.
There was once a time when it was given that Juventus would win Serie A. However, in recent years, Inter Milan, AC Milan and Napoli all have become champions of Italy, and Juventus have struggled and slipped behind…