Watford in Danny Rose talks

Brighton winger Simon Adingra described Ivory Coast’s Africa Cup of Nations triumph as “one of the most beautiful moments of my life”.

Hosts Ivory Coast produced a 2-1 comeback victory over Nigeria on Sunday to become African champions for the third time, with Adingra setting up both goals and being named player of the match.

“We did it together – we’re Africa champions and it’s incredible,” said Adingra.

“I’ve just experienced one of the most beautiful moments of my life and that’s down to the effort of everyone in the team.”

The hosts fell behind in the showpiece when Nigeria captain William Troost-Ekong headed in a 38th-minute opener against the run of play.

Second-half goals from Franck Kessie and former West Ham strike…

With Europe s elite making their return from the international break this weekend, we look set for a stacked schedule. So, for those of you who are looking to place a Saturday accumulator, we have found a handful of helpful tips that are worth keeping an eye out for.

Saturday April 1st
BST 14:30 Union Berlin vs Stuttgart

While Union Berling might have been left heartbroken after their European adventure came to an abrupt end prior to the international break, Saturday s hosts have continued to gain a string of plaudits. Last seen finding a welcomed boost as they secured an eye-catching 2-0 victory at home against Eintracht Frankfurt, Urs Fischer s men should be smelling the chance to make another Bundesliga statement this weekend. With their sights set on snapping up …

Verdict: Both teams score

Best odds:

Bookmaker: 

Sevilla travels to Alaves looking for the 2nd win in La Liga following a disappointing start that left the former Europa League winners in the bottom half of the table. The game will be played on Friday night at Mendizorrotza Stadium in front of 19000 fans keen to see Alaves home invincibility extended.

Alaves

After a previous season with excellent results that led to Alaves finishing 10th and avoiding the relegation threat, the hosts are targeting a Conference League position by the end of this term. Starting the pre-season preparations early, the hosts finalized their squad following 8 test games against other Spanish sides.

Although the Blue Whites didn t play against top opponents before the…

Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia will miss the rest of the season after suffering a setback in his recovery from a thigh injury.

The 20-year-old suffered the injury when making his Blues debut as a substitute against Crystal Palace in December.

Chelsea said in a statement on their website: “Midfielder Romeo Lavia is to unfortunately miss the remainder of our 2023-24 campaign following a setback in his recovery.

Midfielder Romeo Lavia will miss the remainder of the 2023/24 season.

Read the full statement below.

— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC)

“Recent medical assessments have confirmed that Lavia, who sustained a significant thigh injury against Crystal Palace back in December, will not feature again this season.”

Lavia, who joined…

Departing Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp would vote to remove VAR in its current guise from the Premier League, though he also believes officiating standards are a problem.

On Wednesday, it was revealed that Wolves – who have been on the wrong end of several contentious decisions this season – had tabled a motion to abolish VAR from the top flight.

The club listed several negative consequences brought on by the technology s introduction, including an impact on in-stadium atmospheres, diminished accountability of match officials and its role in furthering completely nonsensical allegations of corruption from fans.

The role of VAR is now set to be discussed at an annual shareholders meeting on June 6, though Wolves motion is thought unlikely to garner the 14 vote…

Market: Azerbaijan win

Odds: 6/5 @

Meeting for a friendly showdown on Tuesday afternoon, Azerbaijan will welcome Kazakhstan to the Baku Olympic Stadium.

Starting with the hosts, eventually falling to a 3-1 loss away at Albania over the weekend, Azerbaijan will certainly be looking to claim an immediate response here. Although the Blues might have fallen well short of mounting any kind of EURO 24 qualifying charge last year, interim boss Arif Asadov has seen his squad suffering just a trio of defeats from any of their previous eight appearances across all competitions. Making a stunning statement during November’s international break as they stormed their way to a 3-0 romp against Sweden, Azerbaijan will be excited by their largely rugged success on home soil. …

Scotland head coach Steve Clarke was adamant his side should have been awarded a penalty as their Euro 2024 campaign ended with a 1-0 defeat to Hungary in Stuttgart.

Kevin Csoboth scored the winning goal in the 10th minute of injury-time to put Scotland out of another major tournament in the group stages.

However, things could have been much different for Clarke s side.

Stuart Armstrong looked to have skipped beyond Hungary s Willi Orban in the 80th minute, before the RB Leipzig defender grappled across the midfielder, with both tumbling inside the area.

Referee Facundo Tello waved away Scotland s appeals, and a subsequent check by VAR deemed the challenge not worthy of awarding a spot-kick.

“It was 100% a penalty, Clarke said. Somebody, som…

Pep Guardiola insists Lionel Messi is not part of Manchester City s transfer plans after the six-time Ballon d Or winner s sensational exit from Barcelona.

Messi was widely expected to sign a new deal at Camp Nou this week, to prolong a career-long association with Barca after his previous terms expired in June.

However, the club issued a statement on Thursday stating financial and structural obstacles – relating to both the Blaugrana s parlous financial state and LaLiga s strict economic controls – prevented Messi from signing a contract to which he had already agreed.

City were widely understood to be Messi s preferred destination when he attempted to leave Barcelona 12 months ago, but Paris Saint-Germain are viewed as the frontrunners this time around.